Election officials in West Virginia are scrambling to fix a major mistake on the Republican primary ballot that is affecting all 55 counties. Hancock County Clerk Eleanor Straight explained to NEWS9’s Kelly Camarote that the problem was revealed to county officials during a four-hour conference call with the West Virginia Secretary of State’s Office. “We always double check, but there’s always a margin for error,” said Straight. “It was previously stated there were 18 delegates to be chosen for the primary election. The actual total was 19.” The mistake was found by state Republican party leaders after Hancock County already printed and sent absentee ballots to military personnel serving outside the county. “We were allowed to put a sticker over the one little sentence that said 18,” said Straight. “And to make it 19.” Straight said the voting machines need to be reprogrammed as well.
Straight expected the reprogramming to happen easier in Hancock County than in other counties across the Mountain State that use optical scanners. “Like Kanawha County, which is our biggest county, all ballots have to be reprinted,” said Straight, “But they promised elections officials that the ballots will be done prior to early voting.”
Full Article: Election officials scramble to fix ballot mistake | www.wtov9.com.