19. Vote counting has been problematic throughout American history
In elections throughout the United States, counting votes was historically a problem. In small communities where voting was done openly and by voice, the count was a matter of public knowledge. Altering the count of the voters who arrived at the polls and spoke their vote was a virtual impossibility as long as those watching knew how to count. Paper ballots made the system less reliable, as they were collected in various locations and either counted there, or sent to another location for tabulation. Ballot boxes were “lost” or the votes within were easily modified by addition or subtraction.
In some elections, decisions were made by those responsible to simply discard ballots, under various excuses such as claiming they were improperly filled out, not signed, or were not the official ballot designated for use in the election. In nearly all locations until early in the 20th century, election officials were appointed by the political party in power at the time of the election, often the local sheriff. In larger cities and some states, election boards under various names were responsible for certifying the results of the public’s voting. Simply ignoring the correct count was not unheard of, at all levels of the electoral process.