We are just days away from the recall Election Day, where voters will decide whether to keep Governor Gavin Newsom in office.
In this last weekend before the big day, voters in Woodland Hills experienced a glitch at check-in. Some voters were told they had already voted, when they hadn’t.
A spokesperson with the LA County Registrar’s office says voting never stopped at the two locations with this glitch.
Provisional ballots were offered to those affected and people were still able to drop off their ballots, and he says there were some voters checking in without issues.
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Monica Almada, who was affected by this, says she felt uneasy about the whole situation.
“My confidence is not the same as it used to be about the voting system,” Almada said.
When she came to cast her ballot at the Disabled American Veterans 73 Vote Center in Woodland Hills Saturday morning, she started recording when she realized other voters were complaining about a glitch.
“We’re having issues with the system, and it’s saying people voted.”
When she tried to check in, she was told she had already voted.
“It’s the same for you as well. That's the same for everyone, too,” the clerk said.
The LA County Registrar office confirmed that some voters who tried to check in at this location and at the El Camino Real Charter High School Vote Center were told the system showed they had already voted, so they were offered a provisional ballot instead.
Provisional ballots are regular ballots that are processed and counted after verifying the voter’s eligibility.
“So my concern basically is why is the system glitching like this? This is a pretty serious glitch,” Almada said.
The registrar’s office says the problem was with the settings on some electronic poll book devices used to check in voters.
They issued the following statement:
“The voters who experienced this issue were offered and provided a provisional ballot, the fail-safe option to ensure no one is turned away from voting. After troubleshooting the issue, the equipment at the locations was replaced and voting continued.”
“I came at the right time. I was in and out, a breeze,” voter, Marshall Schoneberg, said.
The issue was resolved by the time Schoneberg cast his ballot around 6 p.m.
“You gotta roll with the times. It’s technology and things happen,” he said.
As for Almada, she felt more comfortable voting in person at another vote center, feeling relief she finally cast her ballot.
“One of the ways to speak up is having an opinion and coming to vote is one way to do it,” Almada said.
There are 253 vote centers in LA County where you can cast your ballots through Election Day on Tuesday.
