The sister of country music legend Dolly Parton is making waves in Tennessee, but not everyone wants to hear what she has to say.
The Parton family is still mourning the singer, who passed away on Aug. 25.
However, the family’s latest controversy has reignited more scrutiny as fans continue to grieve their loss.
Stella Parton, the younger sister of late country music legend, has found herself in the middle of a heated political debate ahead of midterms.
Her recent Facebook posts have sparked accusations and drawn particularly nasty remarks from people who believe she should follow in her famous sister’s footsteps.
Stella claims a voting machine repeatedly changed her selection while she cast her ballot during Tennessee’s early voting period. According to the singer, the machine kept registering Republican gubernatorial candidate Marsha Blackburn instead of her preferred choice.
The alleged incident happened at the Hermitage Library in Nashville, according to The Tennessean.
She gave more details in several messages on her social media page.
“In Tennessee last week at the Hermitage Library where I voted, I had to go back three times and correct my vote because it kept defaulting to Marsha Blackburn. I would never vote for her for anything,” Stella wrote on Facebook.
The singer said she eventually called a poll worker for assistance after repeatedly noticing the problem.
“Again, I remind you to double check your ballot before you print it out and put it through the machine,” she warned in another post.
She said she had to call a poll worker over when her ballot kept changing to the wrong candidate “on the third try. No, this is not a joke!”
Stella questioned whether voters could trust the equipment and urged Tennesseans to take time to review their ballots.
“I’m putting this out here because when we vote, we take it seriously but we try not to hold up the long lines. Do it anyway. Don’t let them rig this election,” she said.
“I’m more frightened and frustrated than angry,” added Stella.
Her account quickly attracted attention. Facebook users turned their attention toward national politics, with many claiming they experienced a similar issue.
“Wow!! The exact same thing happened to me!! I chose not to say anything as I chalked it up to user error although I didn’t believe it in my heart. Thankfully, I’m always one to double-check my votes,” said one person.
Another wrote, “This is very disturbing to hear. I also voted at the Hermitage Library but didn’t check the final ballot because I assumed it would have transferred my votes correctly.”
The reactions showed how quickly a complaint about voting equipment could become a personal attack on the Parton family.
Stella wasn’t alone in reporting trouble. According to The Tennessean, other Tennessee voters described similar experiences during early voting, which began Oct. 14.
One Facebook user admitted initially blaming themselves.
“So, this happened to me when I early voted the other day… at the time I just attributed it to fat finger syndrome,” the voter wrote.
Election officials, however, have not established that machines were deliberately changing votes.
Tennessee Coordinator of Elections Mark Goins said the state’s voting systems include safeguards that allow voters to review their selections before submitting their ballots.
Those protections include a selection screen, a final review screen and a paper record. Officials encouraged anyone experiencing problems to alert poll workers immediately.
The political backlash also highlighted the difference between Stella and her famous sister.
Dolly, who died Aug. 25 at 80, famously avoided publicly identifying as either a Republican or Democrat. She refused to endorse Donald Trump or Hillary Clinton during the 2016 presidential election.
Even when Trump offered her the Presidential Medal of Freedom twice, she declined. Dolly cited her husband’s illness and COVID-era travel concerns.
Following her death, Trump ordered American flags lowered to half-staff for one week in her honor. The extraordinary gesture came after years of Dolly politely keeping the president and his administration at arm’s length.
Meanwhile, the Parton family has faced another controversy involving Dolly’s nephew, Bryan Seaver.
Seaver, who protected his aunt for more than 20 years, was dismissed from his security position in September. He had also been entrusted with announcing her death to the public.
A subsequent lawsuit accused him of making threats against people managing Dolly’s estate. He denied wrongdoing and insisted his statements had been taken out of context.
Now Stella’s voting complaint has brought the family name into another public dispute.
Whether the reported machine problems were caused by touchscreen errors or another malfunction remains unresolved. Stella says she corrected her selections before casting her ballot.
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