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Voting By Email In New Jersey Runs Into Snags

MELISSA BLOCK, HOST:

And we're going now to NPR's Pam Fessler, who's keeping track of voting issues and voting irregularities through the evening. And we just heard, Pam, from Robert Smith about trouble, obviously, in those states so badly hit by Superstorm Sandy. Where else are you hearing about problems on Election Day?

PAM FESSLER, BYLINE: Well, actually most of them have occurred in the New Jersey-New York area for obvious reasons. New Jersey also has had this problem because of email. Voters have been told that they're able to email their ballots or fax them. And people have tried to email them but the servers aren't receiving the emails. There are big backups. So, the secretary of state has extended the deadline until Friday when people can actually email or fax...

BLOCK: In New Jersey.

FESSLER: ...in New Jersey. It's not even clear whether that's legal. We've also seen some problems in Pennsylvania with the new voter ID law that's there. A judge ruled that people could be asked to show photo ID but they're not required to. But there's a lot of...

BLOCK: Which is confusing...

FESSLER: Exactly. Very confusing. It's a very controversial law. So, people have been reporting that they have been pressured to show ID when they didn't have. And some people have in fact said that they were turned away from the polls. It's not quite clear how many people. But there certainly has been a lot of confusion. Also, you know, some reports of, you know, voting machine problems. But quite frankly, considering all of the controversy we have heard this year about voting issues and voter fraud, things have actually been going fairly smoothly.

BLOCK: There's always Florida. What about Florida? What have you heard?

FESSLER: Actually, in Florida things have been going fairly smoothly too. I mean, we have - there's all the issues of long lines, you know, and you never know with those long lines and delays how many people are discouraged and maybe turned away from voting. The one thing that did happen in Florida is in Pinellas County this morning. Apparently the county supervisor sent out some robocalls telling people that they have until the end of the day tomorrow to vote. But those calls, in fact, were supposed to have gone out yesterday.

BLOCK: I think one of those calls even went to the wife of the former governor, Charlie Crist.

FESSLER: I think so, yeah.

BLOCK: Well, thanks, Pam. Thanks so much. That's NPR's Pam Fessler. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.

NPR transcripts are created on a rush deadline by an NPR contractor. This text may not be in its final form and may be updated or revised in the future. Accuracy and availability may vary. The authoritative record of NPR’s programming is the audio record.

Pam Fessler is a correspondent on NPR's National Desk, where she covers poverty, philanthropy, and voting issues.
As special correspondent and guest host of NPR's news programs, Melissa Block brings her signature combination of warmth and incisive reporting. Her work over the decades has earned her journalism's highest honors, and has made her one of NPR's most familiar and beloved voices.
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