BOSTON – Some polling places in Boston ran out of ballots on Election Day before closing time Tuesday. The ballot shortages were reported in locations in Ward 18, which includes parts of Hyde Park and West Roxbury, according to the Massachusetts Secretary of State’s Office, which oversees elections.
Ballots replenished by police escort
The ballots were replenished by a police escort with lights and sirens, according to a spokesperson for Secretary of State Bill Galvin.
She told WBZ-TV the shortages were due to high voter turnout. It is unclear exactly how many polling locations ran out of ballots.
“Unfortunately, it appears that the Boston Elections Department chose not to send all ballots in their possession to polling places today,” a spokesperson for the Secretary of State said. “After receiving reports that certain precincts in the Hyde Park, Roslindale, and West Roxbury areas were running low on ballots or had run out of ballots, Secretary Galvin instructed the Boston Elections Department to send ballots to polling locations using police cars to deliver them as quickly as possible.”