A programming failure knocked ballot scanners offline across Westchester County on Election Day, forcing voters in a crucial New York House battleground to place completed ballots into emergency containers for later scanning.
The problem began when polls opened Tuesday morning. Machines at polling locations across the county rejected the paper ballots they were supposed to read.
Republican Rep. Mike Lawler, whose 17th Congressional District includes much of Westchester County, alerted voters that the breakdown was countywide and urged them not to leave without casting a ballot.
There is a problem with every ballot scanner in Westchester County. We do not yet know the exact cause of the issue, whether it is the ballot or the machine. The Board of Elections is working with their vendors to resolve it.
However, every ballot will be counted. Stay on line…
— Mike Lawler (@lawler4ny)
[November 3, 2026]
Election officials later identified the cause as a programming mismatch, not a mechanical failure involving the paper itself.
CBS News reported that a late change to one municipal contest required updated programming. That update was tested and installed on early-voting machines and on Ele...