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The Spanish language instructions on city of Hartford ballots for the November election included an error, but officials say they鈥檝e fixed it.

The translation in the ballot failed to accurately convey the meaning of the original voting instructions, State Rep. Minnie Gonzalez said. That could potentially lead to confusion and misinterpretation among Spanish-speaking voters, she said.

鈥淚n English it would say 鈥榯urn the ballot over and vote on both sides.鈥� And then in Spanish it was horrible, you couldn't understand the translation,鈥� Gonzalez said. 鈥淚t was really bad and people were complaining.鈥�

Gonzalez, president of the Puerto Rican and Latino Caucus, sent a letter to the 海角换妻 Secretary of the State earlier this week regarding the concerns raised by voters in Hartford about the Spanish translation.

鈥淚t is not only irresponsible, but inconceivable that in this day and age an official government ballot is printed with instructions that are incoherent,鈥� Gonzalez wrote in the letter. 鈥淭his mistake needs to be corrected and the ballots need to be reprinted or Spanish speaking voters will be confused.鈥�

Noel McGregor, the town clerk of the the city of Hartford, acknowledged the error, and said it has been fixed for the Nov. 7 general election. They鈥檙e providing an additional piece of paper with the ballot that includes correct instructions in Spanish.

McGregor said the city understands the importance of clear and accurate translations for the Spanish-speaking community, and is determined to provide a democratic process for all.

鈥淲e have made sure that those inserts have been placed in the ballots so that everyone will be able to understand,鈥� McGregor said. 鈥淭hose corrections have been made, and everyone is aware and is no longer an issue.鈥�

In her letter, Gonzalez emphasized the importance of ensuring fair access to the electoral process for all citizens, regardless of language barriers. She urged the Secretary of the State to rectify the issue and ensure that Spanish-speaking voters are able to vote without any hindrances.

The Secretary of the State鈥檚 office does not have oversight over municipalities鈥� ballots, said Tara Chozet, an office spokesperson. Since the issue has been addressed, the office is committed to ensuring a fair and just voting process in accordance with the law, she said.

鈥淭he responsibility of ballots are at a local level,鈥� Chozet said. 鈥淪o we鈥檝e been working with the city of Hartford, and we did ask them to reprint the ballot and we gave them a recommendation of language.鈥�

Gonzalez said she will be discussing the matter at a Hispanic representatives meet and greet event on Saturday at Mi Casa Wellness Center on Park Street. Gonzalez hopes to gather feedback and suggestions on how to improve the translation process for future elections.

Note: The headline and the story have been updated to clarify that the ballot included an error in Spanish, not several errors.