The 29-year-old speech pathologist, currently staying at home to care for her young daughter, began trying to register online at 3 p.m. She kept seeing the same message: “File not found.” She kept trying from multiple devices and multiple locations but, when the midnight deadline arrived, nothing had changed.

“I even set alarms on my phone to wake up because I knew I had until 11:59. But every time I tried, I got the same result,” Aguiar-Wallis said. “This is a huge election. To not be able to vote or have a say in my future or my daughter’s future — not because I chose to but simply because I’m being restricted and my rights are being infringed on — that’s scary.”

The ACLU of Virginia noted that state law makes accommodations for people standing in line when registration closes, and argued that similar accommodations should be made for those who tried to register online. The ACLU said the state is legally required to have functional registration systems in place.

McAuliffe’s office said the governor has limited power to order an extension because the deadline is set in state law. McAuliffe spokesman Brian Coy said an extension would require action by the General Assembly.

“Unfortunately, the registration deadline is set by the code, and we processed as many as we could,” Coy said.