Dozens Leave Upper Saucon Poll Without Voting After Waiting Hours

For voters at Upper Saucon Township polling station number 3, the 2012 electoral process brought nothing but frustration. 

While many polling stations reported short wait times, those who voted at Calvary Bible Fellowship faced extended wait times.

Dozens of voters reported waits approaching two hours to take their turn at the polls. Several dozen left the polling station in frustration without taking their turn to vote. 

Voters reported that inside, the check-in table slowed the process, leaving as many as six of the 10 voting machines sitting empty at any given time. 

Lehigh County election official Tim Benyo sent additional poll workers to Calvary Church in the late afternoon to try and alleviate the situation. "The longest part is looking people up in the books and they already have three people doing books," said Benyo. "I’m trying to find a person to send there." In the end, Benyo located additional workers, but the bottleneck proved to be a continued problem. 

"I've voted in every election for the past 40 years," said Upper Saucon resident Walter Holliwell, who told reporters he had waited for close to 90 minutes before giving up. "My back hurts, my legs hurt, and I'm going home."

Holliwell isn't alone in his frustration. Several readers took to social media to express their anger at the long lines. "With so much technology hard to believe what some districts had such long lines all day," said Mary Lynn Ford Foley. "Took me an hour and half at 11:30."

Tell us, did you encounter lines? What could Lehigh County do next election cycle?