If voting problems are frequent, it is now more difficult to extend voting times.
Page 72: The election hours in a district can only be extended by order of a judge of the Supreme Court of the district in which the district is located for an important reason. This is evidenced by clear and compelling evidence that people in this district were unable to choose periods during a certain period or in a certain period of time. The electoral hours may not be extended longer than the total time in which people in such a district could not vote. Any order that extends the election hours in a district beyond 9 p.m. is made in writing with specific factual findings that support such an extension.
This is a small change, but it can have a significant impact on whether voting hours can be extended in the event of a problem.
Previously, a judge could order that a district remain open as long as necessary because of an issue that had hampered the voting (for example, if the power went out for 30 minutes, the judge could add an hour of voting at the end of the day). The new provision provides for a discharge period that corresponds exactly to the time when people were unable to vote.
Georgia is no stranger to election day mishaps and problems. The first of June last year was marked by long queues caused by faulty machines. Some counties had no choice but to ask each voter to submit a preliminary ballot. Other districts later stayed open late into the night.
Under the new law, voters who had to leave would have less time to come back later if similar electoral problems were to arise.
With a mixture of changes to the counting of votes, high-turnout elections are likely to mean a long wait for results.
Page 65: Beginning at 8:00 a.m. on the third Monday prior to the opening of the polls on the day of the primary, election, or outflow, the registrars or postal voting clerks polling officer has to open the outer oath envelope on which to be approved the oath of the electors by postal voting, which is printed have been checked and accepted … in such a way as not to destroy the oaths printed on them; ̶ provided, ̶ but ̶ that the registrars or postal voting clerk is not authorized to toremove the contents of such Open the inner envelope labeled “Official Postal Vote” ballot with one or more ballot scanners.
Before the start, at least three people must be present who are registrars, deputy registrars, polling officers or postal voting officers. and three people who are Registrars, Assistant Registrars, or Postal Voting Officers must be present at all times while the postal voting envelopes are opened and the postal voting is scanned. After opening the outer covers, ̶ RECEIVES the ballot papers securely and reliably stored until the time for tabulating machines such ̶b̶a̶l̶l̶o̶t̶s̶.̶
However, no person may until the completion of the polls on the day of the area code, election or run-off election, unless otherwise provided in this section of the Code.
A key factor in how far Mr Trump and his allies were able to spread falsehoods about the 2020 election was that it took more than two weeks for news outlets to declare that President Biden had won Georgia. With such a long delay, Republicans would successfully sow doubts about the validity of the election by arguing unfounded that fraud must have occurred.
Georgia’s new Republican electoral law allows the postal ballot counting process to begin much earlier. Local employees are allowed to open and view postal ballot papers three weeks before an election.
However, ballot papers cannot be counted by the end of the polls, which means the process of tabulating and reporting voting totals is likely to be tedious in competitions with high turnout. This could lead future candidates to follow Mr Trump’s example in trying to challenge the results of a legitimate election.
Election officials can no longer accept third-party funding (a measure that references right-wing conspiracy theories).
Page 18: No superintendent may receive or accept funds, grants, or gifts from any source other than the county or township, Georgia state, or federal government. The state election committee is reviewing and reporting to the General Assembly on a proposed method of accepting donations to facilitate the administration of elections and a method of distributing those donations fairly across the state by October 1, 2021.
Last year, when election officials faced myriad challenges during a pandemic to hold the vote, funding for the November general election was tied in political debate over the second stimulus package.
Many local electoral courts in Georgia and other states, especially in poorer urban areas, turned to outside philanthropic groups like the Center for Tech and Civic Life, a nonprofit funded by Mark Zuckerberg that helped counties with their 2020 elections to pay. Now Georgia has eliminated that option.
Right-wing conspiracy theories have long focused on the specter of nefarious outsiders influencing electoral operations with donations. The theories often include anti-Semitic lies about George Soros, the liberal billionaire donor who is also Jewish.
