Hourlong waits prompt to Democrats bolster Fargo caucus site

FARGO, N.D. (AP) - Democrats moved Tuesday to bolster staffing at the largest of North Dakota's 14 caucus sites after heavy turnout forced some voters in Fargo to wait in line as long as an hour.

The party was expecting a big surge in turnout due to a revamping of the state's caucus system and high interest in the presidential race. North Dakota shifted this year from traditional caucuses to so-called 'œfirehouse caucuses'ť that function largely like a typical election, with voters able to show up, cast a ballot and leave.

The process is run by the parties. Democrats set up 14 voting sites around the state, with voting from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. The lines were longest in Fargo, the state's largest city and home to North Dakota State University. The party said wait times in Grand Forks, home to the University of North Dakota, were about 40 minutes. Lines were shorter in Bismarck and Minot.

'œWe've seen an exciting number of new voters and many people who need help looking up their voting districts, which adds some time to processing,'ť said Alex Rohr, state Democratic Party spokesman. 'œWhen we saw long lines, we activated additional volunteers, staff, and equipment.'ť

To speed the process, workers were handing people in line a form to fill out with information to determine their voting district in order to get a ballot.

The limited locations and window for voting meant increased pressure on the caucus sites. Rohr said both were based on the party's 'œvolunteer force.'ť He pointed out that the party gave voters a mail-in option for people who didn't want to or couldn't travel significant distances to vote, or otherwise had problems.

Despite the lines in Fargo, voters didn't seem upset.

'œThis is the way to do it,'ť said Debra Nelson, 68, of Fargo. She said the long lines at the F-M Labor Temple shows that people want a chance in Washington.

Inside the building, which contains the offices of several unions,, volunteers tried to speed up the process while people were waiting in line by handing out forms to previous voters asking for information including voting districts. The new format allowed all residents to vote, no matter where in North Dakota they live, and the party said that took time.

Traffic was steady in Bismarck, with a line of people out the door 25-30 people deep shortly after the site opened, volunteer Kathy Bullinger told the Bismarck Tribune. By early afternoon, voters were completing the process within 5 minutes.

"I think this is fairly easy to walk through," Bullinger said. 'œIt's a very fast ballot this time. Not too complex.'ť

Billie Lentz, 20, a North Dakota State University student, said the wait in Fargo was worth it.

'œI am honestly blown away. I couldn't be happier with this turnout,'ť said Lentz, originally an Amy Klobuchar supporter who switched her allegiance to Joe Biden. 'œI was happy to see this many people taking time out of their day making sure this was a priority.'ť