Machine malfunctions rarely get in the way of voting, Pennsylvania reports show

Pennsylvania voters encountered only scattered voting-machine malfunctions that rarely affected their ability to cast ballots in recent elections, according to a Votebeat and Spotlight PA analysis of problems reported to the state.

Counties reported a smattering of common problems with machines at polling places, such as paper jams and error messages. They typically got such issues fixed quickly by having technicians on call or simply replacing the machine.

For election officials, sending out a technician or staffer to a polling place is usually easier and more efficient than trying to walk a poll worker through a fix over the phone, said Forrest Lehman, election director in Lycoming County. Officials refer to these traveling helpers as rovers or roamers.

“Often you don’t know for sure what’s going on without sending someone out there,” Lehman said. His rovers are prepared with a “Swiss Army knife” of supplies to address any issue they may encounter, he said, and often the biggest delay is just the time it takes a rover to drive to the polling place.


https://www.votebeat.org/pennsylvania/2025/08/04/voting-machine-malfunction-reports-show-scattered-problems/