Voters in Middle Tennessee have flocked to social media just a week into early voting to report ballot issues at polling stations.
Over the past few days, a number of voters, including Dolly Parton's sister, Stella Parton, have taken to social media to report problems with voting machines, saying the devices did not display their desired candidate or changed their selections.
The reported complications come after hundreds of thousands of Tennesseans started casting ballots on Oct. 14 for governor, U.S. Congress, the Tennessee General Assembly and three proposed constitutional amendments.
Here's what voters are reporting and how election officials recommend verifying your ballot.
What exactly are Tennessee voters reporting on social media?
Social media users have reported needing multiple attempts to cast
ballots for their preferred candidates because of alleged issues with electronic voting machines.
Stella Parton took to Facebook on Oct. 21 and encouraged voters to check their ballots after she said it took her three attempts to select her preferred candidate.
"Again, I remind you to double check your ballot before you print it out and put it through the machine," wrote Parton.
"I finally called over a poll worker when my ballot kept flipping to the wrong candidate on the third try. No, this is not a joke! But what good is your vote if the machines are ‘fixed’ this is the issue here."
"So, this happened to me when I early voted the other day… at the time I just attributed it to fat finger syndrome, but I have seen more and more people in Tennessee saying this has happened to them too," another Facebook user added.
Following her initial post, Parton shared a separate Facebook post, urging voters to hit the polls despite the issue.
"In Tennessee last week at the Hermitage Library where I voted, I had to go back three times and correct my vote because it kept defaulting to Marsha Blackburn. I would never vote for her for anything.
"I’m putting this out here because when we vote, we take it seriously but we try not to hold up the long lines. Do it anyway. Don’t let them rig this election."
Similar claims have also appeared on X.
"There is a very disturbing trend being seen in early voting. Texas, Florida, Tennessee, Ohio are reporting difficulties getting the machines to accept democratic votes. The machines change them back to Republican unless the voter persists, pressing several times to get the correct vote to go through," an X user wrote.
How the Tennessee Secretary of State's office says voters should check their ballots
"Tennessee's voting systems are designed with multiple safeguards to help ensure that ballots are recorded consistent with voter intent," Tennessee Coordinator of Elections Mark Goins told The Tennessean regarding the reported issues.
In addition to assuring voters that Tennessee's voting system has multiple safeguards, Goins reminded voters of the several opportunities they have to verify their selections before casting a ballot. Goins said those opportunities are as follows:
- Selection Screen: When a voter makes a choice, that selection is clearly displayed on the voting machine screen.
- Review Screen: Before casting the ballot, voters are presented with a summary screen that displays all selections made during the voting session.
- Paper Record: Voters should carefully review the paper ballot or paper record generated by the system to confirm that their choices are accurately reflected before the ballot is cast.
What to do if you encounter issues at the polls
If voters encounter problems at the polls like the ones mentioned, they should immediately notify a poll worker or their local county election commission so the issue can be addressed before the ballot is cast.
Tennessee election officials also encourage voters to carefully review their ballot selections before final submission. The Tennessee Secretary of State provides election resources and contact information on their website.
Peter Burditt covers trending news and service journalism for The Tennessean. Contact him at PBurditt@nashvill.gannett.com.
This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: Dolly Parton’s sister Stella reminds voters to double check their ballots after early voting. How to verify
