OMAHA, Neb. (KMTV) — Lines at the Douglas County Election Commission office to vote early were about two and a half hours long. Then, around 3 P.M. a power outage resulted in people having to wait even longer to cast their ballots.
The office was able to get OPPD on location to troubleshoot quickly after it occurred.
OPPD had originally estimated two hours before the power would be back on but they were able to get it up and running in about 90 minutes.
People who were in line at the time were given the option to pick up their ballot Saturday instead of having to wait until the power returned.
"We gave voters the option to fill out the form that they would fill out to get a ballot here in our office, and leave that form with us and then we will process those overnight and they can come back tomorrow and pick up their ballots," said Douglas County Election Commissioner Brian Kruse.
Once the power returned voting ran smoothly. A lot of people who were in line during the outage did end up leaving though.
The Election Commission will be extending their hours on Saturday for voting because of the power outage. Instead of 9am-1pm, people will be able to cast their votes until 5 p.m.
Those who filled out a form during the outage and left it to be processed can pick up their ballot on the east side of the building at the loading dock.
OPPD said a squirrel is to blame for all the commotion.