Voters in parts of the southern US state of Georgia have been forced to wait up to three hours to get to the ballot box and vote in the US Midterms, after the county mistakenly only installed three voting machines at the polling site.
Fulton County Elections director Rick Barron confirmed to The Atlantic Journal-Constitution a registration mistake saw only three machines sent to the area.
There should be one machine for every 350 registered voters.
“I just want to tell the voters there that on behalf of me and my staff, we’re sorry for the mix-up,” Mr Barron said.
The mishap prompted Reverend Jesse Jackson to make an appearance at the Pittman Park Recreation Centre to encourage voters to stay and vote, despite the major delays.
The civil rights leader took to Facebook and called the issue a "classic example of voter suppression, denying people easy access to exercise their right to vote" and encouraged voters to remain in the line.
Earlier, Georgia made headlines because of election day problems with voting machines on top of concerns by Democrats that Republican state office holders are subtly trying to suppress black votes.
The governor race is highly contested, between Brian Kemp, who is supported by President Donald Trump, and Stacey Abrams, a Democrat who has campaigned with Oprah Winfrey and former President Barack Obama.
She hopes to become the first black woman to hold the office, in a state seen as part of the conservative Deep South.
Kemp is the secretary of the state of Georgia, meaning he runs the elections.
Critics have noted the conflict of interest.
Kemp also has been accused of trying to freeze the registration of tens of thousands of black voters. Police have harassed campaigners working to get out the vote.
The history of the Deep South, where Jim Crow laws were in place for nearly 100 years after the end of slavery to disenfranchise blacks, cast a heavy shadow over the events.
Meanwhile, in North Dakota, Native Americans are also struggling to vote.
Indian tribal advocates have for months warned that changes to local laws mean voters are now required to have a physical address, but most people living on reservations use post office boxes.
There were reports on election day the Standing Rock tribe was saying its members were being turned away.
Atlanta, GA, USA; Democratic Georgia gubernatorial candidate Stacey Abrams with Rev. Jesse Jackson on the campaign trail. Source: AAP
Democrat Heidi Heitkamp is in a tough race in North Dakota, a Republican-leaning state, and has generally enjoyed the support of local tribes.
Suppression could affect her chances of holding on to her seat in the Senate, with the odds of her winning already estimated at just 25 per cent.
Additionally, in one area of Indiana, a judge ordered polling stations stay open late as they were delayed in getting the day started. Republican lawyers there are trying to push back, amid a tight Senate race.
