***UPDATE: The State Board of Elections has voted to extend voting at Besthesda Ruritan Club and Cole Mill Church of Christ until 8:30 Tuesday night. Voting at other sites was extended by various amounts from 20 to 45 minutes.***

Durham County has asked the State Board of Elections to extend Election Day voting hours in the county by 90 minutes after there were issues causing longer lines earlier in the day.

The issues included a glitch with the electronic poll books used to check in voters. The county was then advised to use paper poll books for the rest of Election Day. A second issue arose when one precinct ran out of authorization to vote forms. Additional forms were brought to the site but the release from the state board said, “Durham elections officials have not reported significant wait times in most precincts throughout most of the day Tuesday.”

The state board said that is has the authority to extend the voting hours but only under certain conditions.

Congressman GK Butterfield released the following statement asking for an extension of voting hours.

This morning Durham County experienced technical issues that have now been resolved. Turnout has been strong and voting has gone smoothly, but the people of Durham were deprived of nearly two hours of voting time because of these malfunctions.

To ensure that the most fundamental rights of voters in Durham County are upheld and that all have a fair chance to participate in this election, the Durham County Board of Elections, the majority of which is Republican, has called for an extension of voting time by 90 minutes this evening.

Unfortunately, the NC Board of Elections has so far obstructed this common-sense approach. As the person who proudly represents Durham in Congress, I believe it is imperative that the state board allow the extension of hours requested by the Republican controlled Durham County Board of Elections, which is acting in good faith.

Congressman David Price, who represents North Carolina’s Fourth District, issued the following statement calling for extended voting hours in Durham.

“I strongly urge the State Board of Elections to grant Durham County’s request to extend voting hours and give all voters the opportunity to make their voices heard in this historic election.”

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