Voters wait more than 2 hours to vote in Lajeado, RS, and TRE-RS expects queues beyond 5pm
Quick Look
In Lajeado, Rio Grande do Sul, voters waited more than two hours to vote at a school in the city, while TRE-RS is working with the possibility that some polling stations will go beyond 5pm this Sunday with voters still voting, according to the Secretary of Information Technology, Daniel Wobeto, who states that the longer waiting time was already predicted and that the queues are shorter than in 2018 due to the training of poll workers and voters.
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Why It Matters
The election in Rio Grande do Sul is taking place with characteristics similar to those of 2018, and TRE-RS already anticipated the possibility of long queues at some polling stations, having carried out training with poll workers and voters to speed up the process.
In Lajeado (RS), voters waited more than 2 hours to vote at the city's school — Photo: Reproduction/RBS TV
The Regional Electoral Court of Rio Grande do Sul (TRE-RS) is working with the possibility that some polling stations will go beyond 5pm this Sunday (4) with voters still voting. According to the TRE-RS Secretary of Information Technology, Daniel Wobeto, the longer waiting time was already predicted by the Electoral Court.
There are reports of queues in different cities in Rio Grande do Sul lasting more than an hour. The TRE's assessment, however, is that the queues are shorter than those recorded in 2018, an election with similar characteristics.
“The perception we have is that the queues this year are, although long, smaller than what we had in 2018, which was an election with the same characteristics”, stated Wobeto.
According to the secretary, the training carried out with poll workers and voters contributed to reducing voting time.
“I think the effort we made to train poll workers and voters has paid off this year,” he said.
Voters in line after 5pm will be guaranteed a vote
Even if voting goes beyond the scheduled closing time, voters who are at the polling station until 5pm will have the right to vote.
In these cases, according to TRE-RS, the voter receives a password and remains in line until they are able to vote.
"The inconvenience was expected, so much so that when we expect voting to close, we expect a slightly longer opening hours this year. Unfortunately, some of the polling stations are expected to go beyond 5pm with voters voting", explained Wobeto.
The secretary reinforced that the vote of anyone who is in the section within the scheduled time will be preserved.
“Whoever is at the polling station goes until 5pm, receives a password and has the right to vote preserved.”
TRE-RS states that the expectation is that only some sections will face this situation, despite the effort to speed up the voting process.
Voting began at 8am and continues until 5pm across the state.
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Open Questions
- How many polling stations exactly went past 5pm?
- What was the maximum waiting time recorded in any section?
- Were there any incidents or interruptions in the voting process other than the queues?
