What Happened at Banana Factory Precinct on Election Day

There were unusually long lines at the Banana Factory precinct (Bethlehem 3N) on election day, as Lehigh students waited for hours before being able to vote. At Northampton County Council's December 5 meeting, VP of Lehigh University Democrats Jack Ciavolella described what he called a "simply unacceptable" election. What really happened?

According to Ciavolella, he dropped friends off at the precinct around 10 am, expecting them to be back around noon. They returned at 7:30 pm. He said there was a similar problem at Kirby Sports Center in Easton, where Lafayette students stood in line for hours. He also complained that in another Bethlehem voting station (1N), voters who left the line found out on their return that they were unable to vote at all after being assured by election workers that they could return. 

He said the county should have more voting machines and should also have an early voting station in Bethlehem. He also suggested that paper ballots should be available, although this solution would not really make voting quicker and might actually slow things down. He said there were only two machines. 

Not long ago, the judge of elections for Bethlehem 1N testified before President Judge Dally and said that five voters who had to leave were allowed to cast provisional ballots. And Director of Administration Nicole Pietrzak addressed the concerns raised by Ciavolella with Council. 

She stated that over the course of election day, nine additional voting machines were deployed. Two replaced machines that malfunctioned. The remaining seven went to precincts with unusually high turnout. Four of them went to Bethlehem's Banana Factory. She indicated the remaining machines went to the Kirby Sports Center and other Bethlehem precincts. 

At the Banana Factory, there were three machines, one of which failed to turn on. An ES&S tech arrived on site and recommended that the machine be swapped out. A replacement machine was in place at 11:20 am. At 12:45 pm, a fourth machine was delivered. At 1:20 pm, an addition epollbook was brought to the precinct, along with a pollworker who could operate it. At 2 pm, an additional pollworker arrived. The ES&S tech then returned to the Banana Factory and remained there until the polls closed. At 4:30 pm, another pollworker arrived. At 5 pm, a fifth machine was delivered with another pollbook. At 6 pm, yet another pollworker arrived. At 6:25 pm, two more pollworkers arrived with additional supplies. Twenty minutes later, there were three more pollworkers on site. At 7:35 pm, a sixth machine was delivered. The poll finally closed at 9:30 pm after one replacement machine and three additional voting machines. four pollbooks and 10 additional workers.  

The county supplied each precinct with one machine for every 450 expected voters. Turnout at Banana Factory was 37% higher than it was in 2016 and a whopping 87% higher than it was in 2020. "This could not have been predicted," observed Pietrzak. She also noted that the judge of elections for tht precinct, who is elected, seemed to lack the sense of urgency demanded by the situation. 

Trump Defeats Harris in Northampton County

Donald Trump has unofficially won in Northampton County. With all 154 precincts in and all 58,914 mail-in ballots counted, he has 88,171 votes to 84,291 for Kamala Harris. Because NorCo is considered a bellwether for the rest of the country, this is very bad news for Harris supporters.

Harris had 36,730 mail-in ballots to 21,229 for Trump. But Trump trounced Harris with election day votes, 66,942 to 47,531. Turnout was a remarkable 74.6%. 

Other than long lines, there were few problems at the polls. In Bethlehem 3, known as Banana Factory, Lehigh U students had to wait several hours to cast their votes. President Judge Craig Dally spurned a Democratic request to keep polls open until 10 pm, but students remained and voted, giving Harris 1,482 votes to just 360 for Trump. 

The unofficial tally does not include provisional ballots. Those will be computed during the official canvass, which starts November 8 and is open to the public. They are unlikely to change the results in any significant way. 

It was something of a red wave. Voters chose Republican Dave McCormick over incumbent Bob Casey, 84,265 to 82,254. They voted for Republicans in all of the row office races. They voted Republican in all contested state house races. Despite being significantly outspent and outworked, incumbent Republican Joe Emrick defeated Anna Thomas in the 137th, 20,203 to 18.796. 

Only Democrat incumbent Congress member Susan Wild survived in the county, though she appears to be losing the race. She won NorCo with 85,241 votes to 84,976 for Republican Ryan Mackenzie. But she is leading in Lehigh County, which is still only partially reported. She has 94,235 votes there to 89,704 for Mackenzie. She was crushed in Carbon County, especially after word leaked that she disparaged the voters there. Mackenzie garnered 19,517 votes to 7,499 for Wild. Combining the three counties, it appears that Mackenzie has 194,197 votes to 186,975 for Wild. 

NorCo's votes are reflected statewide. Harris is behind in Bucks County, one of the collar counties around Philadelphia. Unofficially, Trump leads in the state with 50.83% of the vote. 

Nationally, the New York Times reports that Trump has 267 electoral college votes, with 270 needed for a victory. 

With 93.5% of Precincts Reporting, Trump Ahead of Harris by 8,081 Votes

As I've stated, Northampton County is considered a bellwether in the Presidential race. With 93.5% of the county's precincts reporting, Donald Trump currently has a 8,081 vote lead. But there are still approximately 20,000 MIBs to be tabulated. Moreover, the results from 10 precincts have yet to be tabulated, including the Banana Factory precinct that had long lines of Lehigh students waiting to cast a vote. 

In order to win the county, Harris needs to garner a high percentage of the remaining ballots and win big in several Bethlehem3, Bethlehem6, Easton3-3 and Lower Saucon5. She would need to keep it close in one remaining Bethlehem Tp and one Palmer Tp ward. 

Of the MIBs tabulated thus far, Harris got 63.5% of those votes. If she gets the same percentage of the remaining 20,000 MIBs, That's 12,700 votes to 7,300 for Trump. 

This would give her a total of 83,692 votes, but Trump would still have 86,373 votes. So she needs a higher percentage of those last-minute MIBs in her favor and also needs to win big in the remaining districts. 

Statewide, Trump is ahead. But that will likely get much closer as MIBs are tabulated. But it appears Trump is poised to win NorCo, as he did in 2016. 

Make Your Last Minute Election Arguments

If you have decided to vote at your local precinct, tomorrow is your day. If you're unsure where that is, you can find out here. If you voted by mail and want to make sure your ballot was received and processed, you can track that here. If there is no record that your mail-in ballot has been received, you can cast a provisional ballot on Tuesday at your voting precinct. I have a friend who sent a mail-in ballot but forgot to sign the return envelope. She can cure that mistake today or tomorrow. 

My votes: President - Kamala Harris (a vote for stability over chaos); Senate - Bob Casey (at least he lives here); Congress - Lou Shupe as a write-in (I won't vote for a Sue Wild, who parked in a handicapped spot and failed to respond to two requests for an explanation); Attorney General - Eugene DePasquale (he was very independent and effective as auditor general); Auditor General - Malcolm Kenyatta (I like his proposal for clawbacks on state grant awards that go sour; Treasurer - Stacy Garrity (Democrat Erin McClelland's background is human services, not finance); State Rep. - Anna Thomas (I would like my state rep to be transparent and accountable, and Joe Emrick is neither). 

This is how I voted. I am making no predictions. Please feel free to make your own last-minute arguments. Just remember that the more vitriolic you get, the more you spoil your own arguments. 

NorCo Election: Election Comm'n Meeting Today, Audit on Friday

Now that the canvass of Northampton County's 2023 municipal election is complete, the Elections Comm'n is poised to meet today at 3 pm in the courthouse cafeteria (lower level). The main purpose of this meeting is for board members to certify the election results to the state. This is a ministerial task and is actually what triggers possible election challenges. 

The five members of the elections commission are selected by the Executive and confirmed by County Council from a list of five nominees submitted by the two political parties who received the highest number of votes in the most recent general election. They serve for two years.  

The current elections commission consists of Chair Sharon Gavin-Levy, Daniel Lopresti, Margie DeRenzis, Scott Hough and Vicki Evert. Their terms all expire at the end of this year. 

Before the tally is certified, the public will be afforded an opportunity to weigh in and recount their experience at the most recent election. 

In addition to certifying the results, the elections commission will receive a report from Registrar Chris Commini. I am told that representatives from ES&S, vendor of the Express Vote XL voting system, will be on hand to explain what happened. 

Given that so many members of the public are upset by the fiasco on Election Day, I imagine the meeting will be packed. 

Following the vote certification, a statistical audit of thye November 7 election will take place on Friday, November 24, at 10 am, in Room 1211 on the first floor of the county courthouse.   

Lamont McClure on the Hot Seat

NorCo Exec Lamont McClure and ES&S both apologized at last night's meeting of County Council for the numerous Election Day issues last week. There was a coding error by ES&S in preparing the ballot for use in the municipal race. This error was subsequently missed by both ES&S and county officials during the pre-election testing (known as L&A) before the election. This made the voter verifiable ballot inaccurate in an appellate court retention race. Use of the Express Vote XL voting machine was temporarily halted while election officials scrambled to determine what had happened and why. In the meantime, voters were instructed to vote on emergency provisional ballots. but quickly ran out of them. Some precincts actually turned voters away. Despite the apologies and explanations, McClure was on the hot seat for about two hours as Council members John Goffredo and Lori Vargo Heffner hammered away repeatedly. 

The meeting started with complaints from three members of the public, two of whom insisted that someone needs to be fired. NorCo GOP Chair Glenn Geissinger was among them. He observed that this is the second election since the county began using the Express Vote XL in which problems arose.  He noted the apparent inconsistency between what voters were told in 2019 and 2023. "In 2019, we were told that what is on the card is what's recorded. Don't worry about it if the electronic device has a little bit of a glitch. Not a problem. We got the card. In 2023 we are being told the electronic machine is what's ok. Please ignore the card. Which is it?" He urged the county to get rid of the XL and purchase a new system. 

McClure said that he personally apologizes to "any voter who suffered for any inconvenience or worse on Election Day. He said that election officials contacted the Department of State as soon as they became aware of the issue. Under guidance from the state, the elections office obtained a court order to inform the public of the issue. He noted the error was a "printer only" error and that vote tabulation was accurate. He indicated election results will be audited on November 24 at 10 am." He indicated that pre-election testing will be strengthened. He agreed that it is important to restore public confidence in election integrity. 

Goffredo demanded that someone be fired, even if it is a "sacrificial lamb to let people know we take this job seriously ... ." McClure dismissed the notion of terminating people just to make a point. 

Goffeedo said he spoke to people who were unable to vote because they had to return to work. He vowed to resign unless McClure fires someone. He insisted that election day turnout among voters who voted at the polls was lower in 2023 than in 2021. As I've reported previously, election day turnout at the precincts was 22.17% in 2021 and 21.4% in 2023. There was little difference, and McClure told Goffredo that part of the reason for this slight decrease is that more Republicans are finally voting by mail instead of in person.  But Goffredo ignored him. "I'm talking and you're listening," he declared to the Exec.

McClure rejected Goffredo's call for a new system, saying it would guarantee errors during a Presidential election next year. He said a new system "will necessarily fail" because a new system would have a learning curve with both voters and election workers. "That's a terrible attitude," responded Goffredo. 

Eventually, Council President Kerry Myers reeled Goffredo in, and cautioned against the constant "jab, hook, jab, hook."

Council member Lori Vargo Heffner used this mishap to vent about her own differences with McClure. She accused his administration of being "terse" or "flip" [sic[ with her and Council. She advised ES&S against "falling on the sword for anybody" in an apparent jab at the McClure administration. She wondered why this issue was not brought up before last month's Governance Committee. As McClure noted, it's a bit unrealistic for election officials to discuss a problem before they know it exists. 

She complained that Council's relationship with the Exec is "devolving," and proved her point because when McClure attempted to respond, she cut him off with "I'm not asking a question; I'm speaking." Then she almost immediately told him she wants answers. 

McClure explained that Amy Cozze, when the was voting registrar, stopped the practice of loading up election judges with paper ballots because they were too heavy and costly. He made clear that practice will change.

He added that, so far as he knows, elections office staff never told a single election judge to turn voters away, but it happened. He added that some election judges never turned on the county-supplied phones to communicate with the elections office.  He indicated that Human Relations will be interviewing elections office workers to determine more precisely what happened. 

Council member John Cusick told ES&S he no longer trusts them or has confidence in their machines., He said that, in the future, he will vote by mail or use early voting to cast his ballot. 

Council member John Brown stated that elections office personnel might be career service or union, but the office is ultimately run by Administrator Charles Dertinger, who serves at the pleasure of the Exec.

Council member Tom Giovanni, himself a computer expert, agreed there is nothing wrong with the XL. He attributed what happened to human error in the coding and subsequent testing. 

Report Your Experiences at the Polls Here

Polls will be open between 7 am and 8 pm. If you're uncertain where you should vote, you can use this polling place finder.  Please feel free to share your experiences here. Was it crowded? Any problems with the machines? Was any active electioneering going on inside the polling place? Let us know.

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7:49 am: Very small turnout at Allentown Fairgrounds polling place at 7:00 am. There's a Lehigh County Commissioner candidate (Jon Irons) greeting voters and handing out palm cards promoting the "People's United Platform" of Gerlach & Bushe for City Council and Irons for County Commissioner paid for by Friends of Ce Ce Gerlach.

8:16 am: Bethlehem - Slower than normal for early birds. Ken Kraft has worker looking for R write in (guess he really doesn't want Bill Rowe on ballot).

For City Council Ricky Butler and write in candidate Jim Follweiler were there.

9:36 am: (Joe) Just voted in Walnutport borough (apx. 9:15 a.m.). The place is a ghost town.

9:49 am: My experience was great. I walked to a post office about a mile away two weeks ago on a sunny day.

I put my ballot in the slot and walked home.

10:19 am No problem voting. Dropped it in the mail last week. Next day, got email that my vote has been received. Remember Democrats, vote early and often and harvest plentiful!

11:58 am: Easton, slower for sure. People at the polls are all friendly getting along. Ken Greene was here, and have seen Sal vols. A Frank vol and Crystal was also here. Wonder if it will pick up after work?

1:15 pm: Anyone looking for write in votes watch what works are telling those who ask for help. Poll 14-2 in Bethlehem, a woman was told to vote then come back and ask how to write in by the poll worker, the judge caught it but was too late for that voter. In 14-3 a D voter was told they couldn't write in a R under D page, that voter made clear to worker, they can write in anyone they choose. Thanks Bernie for this forum.

3:04 pm: I voted at Bushkill. It was totally dead. Not one person in line. Nadeem was there but curiously did not approach me. I must look like a Republican lol.

4:36 pm: One campaigner outside West Easton. Husband of a write-in candidate for Wilson Area School District Board who said his wife wanted to stop Critical Race Theory being taught in schools. I gave the card back. How soon before she would ban books that mention Trail of Tears, slavery, the KKK, and the civil rights movement if she wins?

5:17 pm: Quick in and out to vote in Easton across from Giacomo's on College Hill. Poll workers said it had been pretty slow all day. The number of signs from some candidates outside was obnoxious. Volunteers for Sal Panto and for Ken Greene outside - the Ken Greene volunteers asked if I voted for him as i was leaving and I told them I didn’t. Crystal, Lance and Kurt got my city council votes!

5:55 pm: Voted at 5:30 4th Ward in Easton. Was #111, poll workers said it was average turnout but they were expecting more because of the weather.

6:05 PM: Also, had 3 women outside wearing Sal shirts and Timothy Reillys wife was there asking to write him in.

6:12 pm: Roseto slow. I was 121 at 5:00.

7:08 pm: SS Shiloh - uneventful - Panto, Greene, Brown, Pintabone