MEMPHIS, TN— On the final day of early voting, ahead of August's election, hundreds cast ballots Saturday despite numerous polling problems. There have been ballot errors, issues with photo identifications, and now the state wants to audit the Shelby County Election Commission. Despite all that most remained hopeful their vote will count....
"I hope my vote counts,” said Lisa Thomas who voted at a polling place in Shelby Farms.
"Some of the votes will count and some of them won’t because there is too much chaos in the voting process,” said another early voter Thomas Hattis.
It seems as if new problems turn up during every election season but they didn't stop people from voting. More than 500 people voted on the last day of early voting in Shelby Farms.
There is such a big mess this year the Tennessee Secretary of State is stepping in to audit the Shelby County Election Commission. The state noted errors in nearly every election cycle, dating back to 2005. That year a special election was voided because votes were cast by ineligible felons, even deceased people. In 2006, candidates sued the county election commission, alleging that irregularities affected the outcome of the county general election. Then in 2010, an election official loaded the wrong information on an electronic poll book. It showed thousands of people had cast their ballots, but that wasn't the case. In this year's election more than 2,000 people were given the wrong ballots at the polls.
"Lets hope they correct it pretty quickly here because election day is coming up real fast,” said State Representative Steve McManus, R-Cordova.
"Politicians in my opinion are crooked, not all of them some of them," said Hattis but when abc24 news asked him why bother to vote he said, “It took too long for me to be able to vote so I’m going to use my privilege.”
More than 55,000 Shelby County voters have cast their ballots. If you didn't vote you will have to wait until Election Day, which is Thursday August 2nd.
