Democracy tested as US voters cast ballots under new laws

New York Attorney General Letitia James casts her vote at a school in the Brooklyn borough of New York Tuesday, Nov. 2, 2021. New Yorkers are set to make important decisions in elections to pick mayors, prosecutors, county leaders and other local positions.

Craig Ruttle / AP Photo

Voters headed to the polls across the U.S. on Tuesday in the first wave of elections testing new Republican restrictions on access to ballots.

For election officials, it’s a chance to counter a year’s worth of misinformation about voting security and restore faith in democracy for those who still have doubts about last year’s presidential election.

“It is a great dress rehearsal for 2022,” said Minnesota Secretary of State Steve Simon.