The Burlington County Commissioners have received an interim report from Connell Foley LLP, the independent special counsel reviewing the 2024 General Election. The 49-page document outlines several factors that led to long lines and delays at polling locations throughout the county.
According to the report, multiple issues contributed to the election problems, including lack of communication and coordination among election offices, deployment of new voting machines during a presidential election year, outdated district boundaries, insufficient poll worker training on new technology, and hesitancy from both voters and poll workers in using unfamiliar equipment. Other challenges included inadequate numbers of voting machines at some sites, accessibility concerns, layout issues at polling places, and slow responses to technical problems.
Connell Foley’s review involved interviews with officials from county election offices, municipal leaders, technology vendors, representatives from other New Jersey counties, and members of Citizens for NJ Election Integrity. The firm also examined thousands of documents related to voter participation and machine deployment and conducted an in-person inspection of voting equipment.
The interim report recommends 14 action items aimed at addressing these issues. Recommendations include recalculating the number of voting machines per location, adjusting district sizes so none are too large or small, improving poll worker recruitment and training, expanding early voting options and hours, increasing technological support staff on Election Day, enhancing voter education efforts, seeking more input from municipal clerks, and boosting collaboration between different election offices.
Burlington County Commissioner Director Dr. Felicia Hopson stated: “Connell Foley has done a thorough review. The independent special counsel’s interim report outlines preliminary factual findings and assessments about what caused the unacceptable long lines and delays on Election Day, and it makes recommendations about what actions our County should take to prevent the problems from occurring again. It does not place blame on any one office or official; there were failures all around and the report makes that clear. Our County must now work together to quickly implement the recommendations. Several of these are already in the works, and we call on the County’s elections offices to follow through and comply with the others. Whatever assistance and support is required, we will provide it.”
Hopson added: “Voting is one of the most fundamental rights and our Board has made clear the failures that occurred last year were unacceptable. They demand accountability and action to ensure the problems are not repeated. This interim report provides us with a detailed plan to ensure Burlington County has a secure, efficient and transparent voting process that all voters can have confidence in. We are committed to delivering that.”
Some measures have already been put into motion ahead of this year’s primary election. On March 26th, commissioners authorized purchasing additional ballot marking devices, tabulators, machine storage shells—and ensured each polling location will have at least one ballot marking device for every 750 eligible voters as recommended by Connell Foley LLP.
Additionally, officials began redrawing district boundaries in five towns so no district exceeds 750 voters; affected residents will be notified before June’s primary election. The county also plans to increase its team of IT “rovers” available on Election Day for troubleshooting technical issues.
The full interim report is available online at https://www.co.burlington.nj.us/DocumentCenter/View/21515/2024-General-Election-Interim-Report?bidId= .
Burlington County operates under a Board of County Commissioners consisting of five at-large members; Eve Cullinan serves as county administrator according to its official website. Covering 827 square miles—making it New Jersey’s largest county by area—Burlington includes three cities among its 40 political subdivisions (which also comprise six boroughs and 31 townships). The county website highlights community programs such as Outstanding Women awards as well as public resources like Historic Smithville Park (312 acres) and a library system focused on learning opportunities for residents.
