BALTIMORE — As the final in-person voting in an unusual and delayed primary election season began Tuesday morning, shortages of election judges meant the ballot-casting process was going less than smoothly in some parts of Maryland.
The State Board of Elections received reports of locked facilities in Prince George’s County well past scheduled 7 a.m. poll openings, while in Baltimore City, election officials said they were still trying to determine how many sites opened late. Armstead Jones, director of Baltimore elections, said he believed most of the delayed openings were only by 15-20 minutes, caused by a lack of chief judges, who are responsible for administering voting procedures at each precinct and ensuring a fair and accessible election for all eligible voters.
It was not immediately clear how large the shortage of judges was, exactly; election officials said it likely won’t be known until after polls close. Nikki Charlson, deputy administrator of the state Board of Elections, said she did not have that information but that the number of resulting delays was “not a lot.” The state board of elections had continued to recruit for election judges as recently as Monday.
