How Burlington County prepared for New Jersey primary election – new voting equipment, more locations
Tuesday is primary day in New Jersey, and many voters walked inside the Hainesport Municipal Building in Burlington County to cast their ballots Tuesday.
For many, it was only a matter of minutes until they were back outside heading to their cars in the parking lot. The race with the most attention is the Democratic and Republican primary for governor.
"It was just a piece of cake, just walk right in," Terry Horner said.
"It was very quick, in and out," James Cosby said.
"Now, it was easy peasy, they seemed to have solved a lot of the issues," Ted Costa said.
This is a primary and not a presidential year or a general election, so turnout is expected to be much lower than the last election in November.
READ MORE: Where do you vote for New Jersey's 2025 primary election? Find your polling location
Costa said as he waited to cast his ballot for President Trump in November, he had to wait four hours before he was able to vote.
Chopper 3 captured the crowds of voters stuck in line for hours in Burlington County seven months ago. From Hainesport to Medford and Evesham, voters complained about technical issues and not enough machines.
New Jersey's attorney general also successfully sued to extend the deadline and add an extra hour of voting in Burlington County.
"By the time we got in and we thought this isn't so bad, well you had to go all the way down to the back of the building then go all the way back, it was just crazy," Horner recalled.
County leaders called the chaos "unacceptable" and vowed a "top to bottom review" to prevent a similar experience.
CBS News Philadelphia followed up to see if any changes were made.
According to a county spokesperson, several improvements have been implemented since November:
- Two new early voting locations were opened, bringing the county's total up to nine.
- Additional polling locations were added in some voting districts.
- New voting equipment, which includes ballot marking devices and tabulators, was purchased.
- Additional poll worker training was offered, and the superintendent of elections continues to offer voters tutorials on the voting equipment.
- More information technology workers have been deployed to polling locations to assist with tech issues and reduce response times.
Cosby said the changes were obvious and very much needed.
"Oh, I think it should have been addressed a long time ago," Cosby said, "but they seem to be doing a pretty good job here."
