A computer error at the Maryland Motor Vehicle Administration involving voter registration may affect as many as 80,000 voters — about four times as many as officials first estimated over the weekend and about 2 percent of all Maryland voters, state officials announced on the eve of the state’s primary.
Associated Press: Voter Registration Error Affects Far More Than First Thought
06.25.2018 / By BRIAN WITTE
Associated Press: Voter Registration Error Affects Far More Than First Thought
The problem relates to changes voters made in address and party affiliation on the MVA’s website or kiosks, information that failed to be sent to the state elections board. Affected voters will need to use the provisional voting process on Tuesday to cast their ballots. …
Damon Effingham, acting director of the government watchdog group Common Cause, described the incident as “a catastrophic failure” of access to voting.
“For decades, the MVA has been one of the main avenues for Americans to register to vote,” Effingham said in a statement. “Tonight’s news represents a catastrophic failure by the MVA in their duty to ensure every eligible Marylander has access to their right to vote.”
Effingham pointed out that the provisional ballots won’t be counted until the second Wednesday after Tuesday’s primary.
Officials say the problem relates to changes to voter addresses and party affiliation made through the MVA’s website or kiosks between April 22, 2017, and June 5, 2018. If the changes were made without obtaining a driver’s license, ID card or other item, they were not submitted to the elections board for processing.
Affected voters are encouraged to verify their registration information using the state elections board’s voter look-up website. If the website doesn’t show the voter’s current address, a voter can use the board’s polling place locator to find the right voting location for the voter’s new address. Then, the voter can use the provisional voting process to cast a ballot on Tuesday.