Ballot machine glitch hits New York county in US midterm election

A man gets his ballot as he checks in to vote at a polling location on Election Day during the midterm elections in South Portland, Maine on November 3, 2026. Photo by ANGELA WEISS / AFP.

Ballot machines malfunctioned Tuesday in a New York county that will help decide a closely contested House of Representatives race, though officials said votes for the US midterm elections are still being counted.

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The Westchester County Board of Elections “is aware of an issue involving paper ballots that is preventing voting machines from accepting ballots at polling locations throughout the county,” a statement read.

It “wants to reassure every voter that your vote matters, your ballot will be secure and your vote will be counted,” with ballots instead placed in emergency bags.

Parts of Westchester County are included in New York’s 17th district, where incumbent Republican Mike Lawler faces Democrat Cait Conley in a Hudson Valley seat won by Kamala Harris in the 2024 presidential election.

The New York State Board of Elections said on X that there has been no disruption to voting.

“Long-established emergency ballot procedures have been implemented, where completed ballots are secured, under bipartisan control, and will be counted,” it said.

President Donald Trump and his allies have previously spread unproven conspiracy theories about voting machines, alleging that they are faulty or unreliable.