Skidaway Island Democrats

10 hours ago

From the League of Women Voters of Georgia:

How Georgia Votes: Following the Ballot Trail

When Georgia voters feed their paper ballots into the scanners/tabulators and get their “I’m a Georgia voter” stickers, the backend process of tabulation, verification and final certification begins. But your ballot does not disappear into a black hole. The state makes the journey from ballot box to final tally as transparent as possible while maintaining election security.

Why Do Voting Machines Generate a Paper Ballot?

Georgia’s election system produces two identical records of your vote—one in print and one on a memory card. Once you’ve used the ballot marking device, aka the voting machine, to make your choices, you’ll print your ballot and review your selections before taking it to the scanner/tabulator along with the data card. Your selections are not recorded on that data card. It goes back to the check-in kiosk to be cleared and used by another voter. At this point your paper ballot is the only record of your selections. When you feed your paper ballot into the scanner, the selections you made are added to the memory card in the scanner/tabulator. Your paper ballot and its duplicate image on that memory card travel separately through the process with each providing a double check on the other. During early voting and on election day, poll workers keep track of the numbers of paper ballots fed into the scanner, to make sure that the number of printed ballots matches the number of ballots generated on the voting machines and the number of voters who checked in at the kiosks.

What About After the Polls Close?

Voters must arrive at the polls no later than 7 pm on election day but the polls do not close until the last voter in line has successfully cast a ballot. Hours are often different for early voting. At closing, poll workers thoroughly double check the tabulator chute for printouts that did not properly fall into the tabulator bin. Floyd County poll workers, for instance, use mirrors on telescopic handles to look inside the machine and make sure that no ballots have been missed. Poll workers then shut down and seal the voting machines. When a poll worker presses the “Are you sure you want to close the polls” button on the voting machine, it generates three copies of a tabulator tape. This number must match the number of paper ballots recorded on the scanner. One tabulation tape is signed by the poll manager and two assistants, then publicly posted on the outside of the door to the precinct. The other two are also signed. After closing, all ballots are placed in sealed containers for transport. Final paperwork includes all of the tabulations, the date and signature of the poll manager and an assistant. That form accompanies the memory cards and the paper ballots to begin the chain of custody which will see the ballots through the final stages of the tabulation process. These are driven to county election headquarters by at least two workers. Some larger counties use a law enforcement escort.

Is the Process Different for Early Voting vs. Election Day?

The process is exactly the same during early voting, except that memory cards and ballots remain in the on-site tabulators until they are taken out of service when the bin and memory card reach 5,000 ballots. The election director does have discretion over when to pull ballots and memory cards early.

When Do Counties Report the Tallies of Votes Cast?

Each precinct uploads data from the memory cards onto the election night reporting system and publishes them publicly online. One of the tabulator tapes from when the polls closed is prominently displayed at the election office. By state law, counties must certify that the tally is complete, i.e., certify the results, no later than 5 pm the Monday following the election. For the upcoming midterm, that will be Nov. 9. This will give you an idea of voter turnout in your area, but it is not the final outcome.

When Are the Results Final?

Even when the Secretary of State’s site says that 100% of counties have reported, the results are not official. The Secretary of State has until 5 pm 17 days after the election, Nov. 20 for the upcoming election, to certify the results and report them to the governor. Only after county boards of elections have certified can candidates challenge the results and only when the margin is 0.5% or less. That is the primary purpose of the window between certification by counties and certification by the Secretary of State.

If Votes Are Uploaded from the Memory Card, What Are the Paper Ballots For?

The printed record of your vote serves two purposes. First, you can verify that the choices you made on the voting machine are accurately reflected on the paper ballot before you leave the polls. Second, the secured boxes of paper ballots are used for auditing purposes as a double check of the electronic tabulation. This is done both about a week after the election via a risk-limiting audit and, if necessary, in any recount or later additional audit. Paper ballots are securely stored for two years, longer if there are legal actions regarding the election.

Georgia law intends to keep elections safe and secure and ensure that every vote counts, but it also allows for transparency both at the polls and during the tabulation and certification process. Poll workers, managers and watchers are your eyes and ears at the polls. If you’d like to join them, fill out the form from the Secretary of State’s office for training. ... See MoreSee Less