Ballots Too Big in At Least 25 Illinois Counties

Election officials say nearly a quarter of Illinois counties and the city of Aurora are reporting that some primary ballots are too large and don't fit into scanning machines.

A number of the more than 20 counties impacted include East Central Illinois.

Jim Tenuto of Illinois State Board of Elections says all votes will be counted, but tallying may go slower than usual in affected counties. He says the board is working with local election authorities to assess the problem.

"We're trying to gather as much information as we can," Tenuto said. "Apparently the balllots are too wide I believe, and they won't fit into the machine, and it's affecting 25 counties."

He says ballots from two vendors are causing problems in 25 counties. But not all precincts in those counties are affected. Some ballots are fine, even in the affected precincts.

Counties reporting ballot size problems include: Vermilion, Iroquois, Douglas, Grundy, McLean, Clark, Coles, DeWitt, Edgar, Macon, Macoupin, McDonough, Moultrie, and Shelby.

(With additional reporting from Illinois Public Radio)