The Bartow County Election Board approved the recommendation of the elections office on handling voters with flagged registrations showing up to vote in the May 19 primary election.
Registered voters who show up to vote and find out they are flagged will be given a form to update their information before voting. Those with questionable circumstances, such as moving to another county, will be allowed to cast a provisional ballot that will be reviewed after the election by the election board.
Board members raised questions about those living at temporary addresses, like a motel, on a permanent basis. The concern is they will be flagged again next year.
“No matter what the situation is, the bottom line is you have to update the registration,” said Bartow County Election Superintendent Joseph Kirk.
Kirk said he doesn’t know what the solution is to verifying everyone but this is something the election office deals with every year.
“It’s never going to be achieved. It’s a moving target,” he said.
An attorney advising the board said there is a difference in having a legal residence according to city or county code and a residence for voting purposes. He said a residence, like living in a camp in the woods, may not be legal according to city code, but it makes you a resident who can legally vote.
Election officials stated there were 600 on the list, but many were duplicate names listed in several categories. Election officials categorized them so election board members could choose to handle each category rather than the entire list.
Board members approved the recommended process with one vote.
Election officials said 19 people called to update their information after the last meeting. Another 21 were found and flagged by local election workers while researching locations of those flagged by the Georgia Secretary of State. Originally, around 1,200 were flagged by the state office.
None of the names will be removed for the voter roll because law prohibits removal 90 days before a federal election, according to Kirk.
The board also approved changes to poll manager assignments made by Kirk. He said finding workers and poll managers for the May primary was challenging because people are involved in high school graduations and taking vacations.
Melody Dareing is a freelance writer for publications in the U.S, Canada, the UK and Germany. She is a former news director of Adelphia Channel 4 and WBHF Radio. She is on Facebook, X, YouTube, content on Substack, and has a podcast on Rumble.