'Working overtime': local impacts of Va. Dept. of Elections' registration computing error
ALEXANDRIA, Va. (7News) — 7News learned more Tuesday about the local impacts of what the Virginia Department of Elections describes as a "computing error involving the statewide voter registration system."
On Monday, we told you about how technical issues at the state level have Fairfax County elections officials working to process 11,000 voter registration forms they just received from the Virginia Department of Elections.
SEE ALSO: Fairfax County processing thousands of voter registrations delayed by the state
Now, we're getting new numbers that show the impacts in other Northern Virginia jurisdictions as well.
In Alexandria, for instance, local elections officials were recently sent 2,800 unprocessed voter registration applications from the state.
"Due to a state IT issue, I believe they weren't being filtered through properly, so the state wasn't able to get them sent down to each individual locality," explained Angie Maniglia Turner, General Registrar for the City of Alexandria, who said the Virginia Department of Elections confirmed Monday that additional unprocessed registration forms would be headed to her office. "We've got staff now working overtime to make sure they are processed, so anyone affected will be able to vote routinely on Election Day."
In a Monday news release, the Virginia Department of Elections blamed it on a "computing error involving the statewide voter registration system," the department's second such issue in less than a month.
SEE ALSO: Fairfax Co. leaders call for investigation into Va. Dept. of Elections' incorrect mailer
The Virginia Department of Elections said the issue impacted 149,000 voter records submitted from May through September at the Virginia Department of Motor Vehicles:
These transactions include address updates, new registrations, and other changes resulting from visits to the Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) between May and September of 2022. The 149,000 additional records have been sent to Virginia’s 133 general registrars, who are currently processing them as quickly as possible. Each record will be processed individually by registrars to determine voter eligibility in accordance with the Virginia code.
On Tuesday, 7News checked in with several local elections offices in Northern Virginia.
In addition to the numbers reported by Alexandria and Fairfax County, Arlington County elections officials said they had about 2,500 voter registration applications impacted by the state error.
READ MORE: A guide for DC, Maryland and Virginia voters for the 2022 general election
In Loudoun County, elections officials told 7News about 3,000 applications were impacted.
Local elections officials reported staff are making fast progress with those unprocessed voter registrations, with Alexandria, and Loudoun County telling 7News they expect to be caught up by Nov. 2, and Arlington County estimating its elections staff would be caught up by today, Nov. 1.
"We have a little less than 400 to go," Maniglia Turner told 7News. "We're processing those as promptly as we can."
Both state and local elections officials encouraged voters with questions about their voter registration status or polling place to check the Virginia Department of Elections website here.
"If you have questions, definitely give us a call or check online at vote.elections.virginia.gov, and make sure your registration is all up to date," Maniglia Turner said.
Same day voter registration is also an option in Virginia. To learn more about that process, click here.
"What they would do then is vote a provisional ballot, complete a new voter registration application, and that will allow us to process those after the election," said Maniglia Turner. "And we do ask if someone is completing a provisional ballot, just give our election officers plenty of time, they're going to make sure it's done correctly, so it will take a little more time on Election Day."
