The State Election Board on Wednesday recommended election law changes that would end no-excuse absentee voting and advanced a rule that seeks to eliminate Georgia’s voting touchscreens ahead of the 2026 midterm.
Approved with a 2-0 vote with three abstentions, the proposed rule establishes criteria for the Republican-controlled board to declare the state’s touchscreen voting system is illegal, “impossible” or “impracticable” — potentially triggering a switch to paper ballots filled out by hand.
The new rule comes after the Georgia Supreme Court decided that the board lacks the authority to create new election rules that go beyond state law.
Sara Ghazal, the board’s sole Democrat, who abstained from voting, said she felt the proposal’s language was overly broad.
Janice Johnston, a key part of the board’s Republican bloc, also abstained.
The proposal, introduced by a bipartisan group of Republicans and Democrats, will go through a public comment phase before a later final vote.
State legislators are already considering a statewide shift to hand-marked paper ballots.
The board’s Republican majority also approved a resolution asking the General Assembly to end no-excuse absentee voting in the state, except for people who provide a reason they can’t vote in person. Johnston said absentee voting should be the exception, not the rule.
Another resolution asks lawmakers to require ballots from Americans living abroad and military personnel stationed overseas to be accepted by Election Day at 7 p.m. rather than up to three days afterward.
Board member Janelle King said voting is a choice.
“We all have to work hard. We all make sacrifices,” she said. “It is a sacrifice when you go into the polls and vote.”
Meanwhile, Chair John Fervier, who was appointed to the board by Gov. Brian Kemp, said eliminating no-excuse absentee voting would limit access for voters.
“When you have to earn a dollar every day to feed your family, you can’t take a day off and go vote,” he said.
Johnston added the resolutions to the board’s agenda at the beginning of Wednesday’s meeting even though an agenda was set days in advance.
Johnston’s habit of making last-minute agenda changes was confronted at a House elections study committee meeting last week.
State Rep. Saira Draper, D-Atlanta, has compared the board to immature children and raised concerns about the transparency of Johnston’s day-of additions.
“It certainly violates the spirit of the Open Meetings Act, if not the law,” she said. “When you add these things last minute, it really gives the appearance that you don’t want people to know what you’re doing and you don’t want to hear from the public. And the public deserves better than that.”
On Wednesday, Ghazal said she often finds out about changes at the beginning of meetings. The board’s only Democrat added an agenda item as well but said she notified the other members beforehand.
The transparency concerns aren’t new. The board is already facing a lawsuit filed by government watchdog group American Oversight that claims the board has “systematically obstructed public records requests” for information about voter eligibility challenges, communications with outside organizations and voter citizenship verification.
Board members also voted to allow the state attorney general to negotiate a resolution to the lawsuit.
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