UPDATE: Republicans Blake Masters and Kari Lake have filed suit against Maricopa County to keep the polls open following ballot machine errors this morning which slowed voting.
An Election Day disaster is unfolding for election officials in Maricopa County, Arizona, where voters are casting ballots in a widely watched gubernatorial race and a pivotal Senate race that may decided the balance of power in the U.S. Senate.
Maricopa County, the largest county in Arizona, began seeing issues early this morning as ballot tabulating machines started malfunctioning. Voters reported an inability to cast their ballots and confusion on the part of officials. Social media quickly filled up with a confusing torrent of information about whether voters needed to submit another ballot.
Arizona features two of the most hotly contested races in the country right now. Republican Blake Masters vs incumbent Democrat Sen. Mark Kelly in the Senate race and conservative phenom Kari Lake vs Secretary of Democrat State Katie Hobbs in the gubernatorial race.
Regardless of what’s actually going on, the end result will be multiple law suits challenging the outcome of the count — no matter which party prevails in the closely watched Senate elections. Complicating the matter is Hobbs’ role as Arizona’s Secretary of State. That office oversees elections in the state, and Hobbs has refused to recuse herself from oversight of her own election bid. Her role in the preparation leading up to the election day disaster is likely to become a major talking point for conservatives nationwide.