Frustrated voters light up Twitter after waiting hours at L.A. County vote centers
The polls officially closed at 8 p.m. for Tuesday’s primary election. But thousands of L.A. County voters decided to wait to cast their ballots anyway.
While they waited — in some cases for hours — many took to Twitter to share photos and videos of their voting centers and to urge others to #StayinLine. California’s Voter Bill of Rights states that anyone who is already in line by the time the polls close still has the right to vote.
Super Tuesday marked the first test of L.A. County’s new voting system, which cost $300 million and took years for officials to implement.
What was your experience with voting in the presidential primary at L.A. County’s new vote centers? The L.A. Times wants to know.
At the Sherman Oaks East Valley Senior Center Auditorium, one voter reported that he waited three-and-a-half hours to cast his ballot.
Earlier in the day, voters reported broken machines and three-hour waits at the vote center inside UCLA’s Hammer Museum.
In West Hollywood, one voter reported a wait of 80 minutes.
At the Manhattan Beach Library, the wait at about 7:45 p.m. was estimated to be 120 to 140 minutes.
In Eagle Rock, some voters were waiting for up to 45 minutes.
At a vote center in Pomona, those in line “seemed determined to stay and vote.”
California’s primary tested L.A. County’s new election setup as voters used the region’s first wholly redesigned system in more than 50 years.
A video taken by Jackie Albrektson showed a line at a South Pasadena voting center stretching past the entrance after 8 p.m.
One good Samaritan brought refreshments to would-be voters who were still in line nearly half an hour after the polls closed.
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