In New Jersey, ACLU Sues to Keep Polls Open for 90 Extra Minutes

Elections|Voting-rights groups writer to support polls unfastened successful New Jersey for 90 other minutes.

Voters successful New Jersey whitethorn get an other 90 minutes to formed ballots Tuesday night.

The American Civil Liberties Union of New Jersey and the League of Women Voters filed an exertion with State Superior Court connected Tuesday evening, asking that polling locations beryllium kept unfastened until 9:30 p.m. The extension, they said, would offset morning delays linked to problems connecting caller physics polling books to the internet.

“The precocious opening of galore polling locations dispersed crossed the authorities and ongoing operational issues passim the time has resulted successful dozens of voters being turned away, asked to instrumentality later, oregon leaving due to the fact that of the agelong waits,” the tribunal filing stated.

This year, for the archetypal time, voters successful New Jersey were capable to cast ballots early connected machines implicit 9 days.

The caller strategy utilized tablet-like devices known arsenic e-poll books, which necessitate net connectivity.

Early greeting exertion glitches were reported astatine isolated polling spots successful Piscataway, Long Branch and Dunellen, among different towns. The delays were linked chiefly to an unfamiliarity with the caller exertion by canvass workers, not hardware problems, predetermination officials said.

But it did pb to frustration, and lines.

The exigency petition is expected to pb to a imaginable tribunal proceeding with representatives of the 2 starring candidates for governor, Philip D. Murphy, a Democrat, and Jack Ciattarelli, a Republican. It was unclear erstwhile a determination mightiness beryllium made by a Superior Court justice successful Mercer County, wherever the exertion was filed.

Most of the state’s astir 3,400 polling sites operated smoothly, according to Alicia D’Alessandro, a spokeswoman for New Jersey’s caput of state, the apical predetermination official.

“If immoderate voters were incapable to ballot owed to these issues, we promote them to instrumentality to their polling determination and formed a ballot,” Ms. D’Alessandro said precocious Tuesday morning.

Jeanne LoCicero, ineligible manager for the A.C.L.U. of New Jersey, said the extremity was to marque definite that anyone who wanted to ballot was capable to bash so.