WASHINGTON, Nov 7: Crashing voting machines raised the spectre of past US election debacles in Ohio and Florida on Tuesday, but balloting in most places was, in the words of one voter, a `piece of cake’

As millions of Americans turned out for crucial mid-term congressional elections, early fears of new voting dramas emerged as soon as polls opened -- especially in the two battleground states scarred by voting dramas in 2000 and 2004.

In one elementary school in the predominantly black district of East Cleveland, Ohio, all 12 machines went down.

Sporadic problems were also reported in Indiana, Virginia and Maryland and there were various claims by Democrats that under-pressure Republicans were trying to depress turnout.

The machines in East Cleveland took two hours to restart and officials refused to hand out paper ballots until a lawyer for the watchdog group Election Protection showed up.

“The machines weren't working and they were just turning people away,” said attorney Fred Livingstone. —AFP