Ga. Comp. R. & Regs. R. 183-1-12-.11 - Conducting Elections

1. As each voter presents himself or herself at the polling place for the purpose of voting during the time during which the polls are open for voting, each voter shall be offered instruction by a poll officer in the method of voting on the voting system. In providing such instruction, the poll officers shall not in any manner request, suggest, or seek to persuade or induce any voter to vote any particular candidate, political party, or political body, or for or against any particular question.

2.

(a) When a person presents himself or herself at the polling place for the purpose of voting during the time during which the polls are open for voting, the person shall complete a voter certificate and submit it to the poll officers. The voter certificate may be an electronic or paper record. The poll officers shall verify the identity of the person and that the person is a registered voter of the precinct and, if so, shall approve the voter certificate and enter an appropriate designation on the electors list for the precinct reflecting that the voter has voted in the primary, election, or runoff being conducted. The voter's name shall then be entered on the appropriate numbered list of voters.

(b) A poll officer shall then issue the voter an appropriate voter access card authorizing the voter to vote the correct ballot on the touchscreen or utilize the correct access code to manually bring up the correct ballot on the touchscreen. The voter shall then enter the enclosed space in the polling place and proceed to vote his or her choices. Upon making his or her selections, the voter shall cause the paper ballot to print, remove his or her printed ballot from the printer, remove the voter access card from the touchscreen component, review the selections on his or her printed ballot, scan his or her printed ballot into the scanner, and return the voter access card to a poll officer. Then the voter shall exit the enclosed area of the polling place.

(c) If an emergency situation makes utilizing the electronic ballot markers impossible or impracticable, as determined by the election superintendent, the poll officer shall issue the voter an emergency paper ballot that is to be filled out with a pen after verifying the identity of the voter and that the person is a registered voter of the precinct. Emergency paper ballots shall not be treated as provisional ballots, but instead shall be placed into the scanner in the same manner that printed ballots in the polling place are scanned. The election superintendent shall cause each polling place to have a sufficient amount of emergency paper ballots so that voting may continue uninterrupted if emergency circumstances render the electronic ballot markers or printers unusable. For any primary or general election for which a state or federal candidate is on the ballot, a sufficient amount of emergency paper ballots shall be at least 10% of the number of registered voters to a polling place. The poll manager shall store all emergency ballots in a secure manner and ensure that all used and unused emergency ballots are accounted for. All unused emergency ballots shall be placed into a secure envelope and sealed such that the envelope cannot be opened without breaking such seal.

(d) If an emergency situation exists that makes voting on the electronic ballot markers impossible or impracticable, the poll manager shall alert the election superintendent as soon as possible. The existence of an emergency situation shall be in the discretion of the election supervisor. However, if a poll manager is unable to contact the election superintendent after diligent effort, the poll manager shall have the ability to declare that an emergency situation exists at the polling place. The poll manager shall continue diligent efforts to contact the election superintendent, and shall inform the superintendent as soon as possible of the situation at the polling place. The election superintendent, in his or her discretion, shall either overrule or concur with the declaration of emergency circumstances. While the determination of an emergency situation is in the discretion of the election superintendent, the types of events that may be considered emergencies are power outages, malfunctions causing a sufficient number of electronic ballot markers to be unavailable for use, or waiting times longer than 30 minutes.

3. At least once each hour during the time while the polls are open, the poll officers shall examine the enclosed space to verify that no unauthorized matter has been affixed to any voting system component or placed in the voting booth and that the voting system components have not been tampered with in any manner. Poll officers shall also check that no unattended ballots are left in the printer or anywhere in the enclosed space other than the appropriate ballot box. Any unattended ballots found in the enclosed space that do not belong to a voter currently in the enclosed space shall not be counted, but shall be secured and labelled as unattended ballots.

4. The polling place shall be arranged in such a manner as to provide for the privacy of the elector while voting and to allow monitoring of each voting system component by the poll officers while the polls are open. The electronic ballot markers and ballot scanners used in the polling place shall be set up in a manner to assure the privacy of the elector while casting his or her ballot while maintaining the security of such units against tampering, damage, or other improper conduct. In addition, at least one ballot marking device shall be configured for voting by physically disabled voters in wheelchairs and provisions shall be made to provide for the privacy of such electors while voting.

5. It shall be permissible under O.C.G.A. § 21-2-410 and shall not constitute assistance in voting under O.C.G.A. § 21-2-409 for poll officers to assist a voter in inserting the voter access card into the ballot marking device and in explaining the operation of the unit to the voter; provided that the poll officer shall withdraw from the voting booth prior to the voter making any selections. The poll officers shall not in any manner request, suggest, or seek to persuade or induce any voter to vote for any particular candidate, political party, or political body, or for or against any particular question.

6. Voters utilizing an audio tactile interface (ATI) device to vote on the ballot marking device without the assistance of any other individual shall not be considered as receiving assistance in voting and shall not be required to complete the forms required for receiving assistance in voting pursuant to O.C.G.A. § 21-2-409; however, if another person other than a poll officer is handling the printed ballot before it is inserted into the scanner, that person shall be considered as assisting.

7. The poll officers shall confirm that voters deposit their ballots and return the voter access cards to the poll officers prior to leaving the enclosed space in the polling place. The poll officers shall arrange and configure the polling place and provide staffing at such places within the polling place to confirm that a voter will not leave the enclosed space with a ballot or voter access card.

8. The election superintendent shall cause each polling place to be sufficiently staffed. At least one poll officer shall be assigned to assisting voters who have questions while they are in the voting booth but before they approach the ballot scanner. Another poll officer shall be stationed at every ballot scanner in use in the polling place while voting is occurring. The poll officer stationed at the ballot scanner shall offer each voter specific verbal instruction to review their printed paper ballot prior to scanning it. In addition to the preceding instruction, the poll officer stationed at the ballot scanner shall offer general instruction throughout the period while voting is occurring telling voters that sample ballots and magnifying devices are available to assist them in reviewing their paper ballot. The poll officer shall take all reasonable precautions not to view the selections on an elector's ballot unless it is required due to assistance requested by the elector. If a poll officer observes a voter attempting to leave the enclosed space with a paper ballot, the poll officer shall inform the voter of the consequence of not depositing his or her paper ballot into the ballot scanner prior to leaving the room.

9. A voter may request information from poll officers concerning how to use the electronic ballot marker or any other voting system component at any time during the voting process. However, once the voter scans his or her ballot into the ballot scanner, even if the ballot is blank with no votes cast, such voter shall be deemed to have voted and may not thereafter vote again. If a voter leaves the room encompassing the enclosed space with his or her paper ballot and does not place that ballot into the appropriate ballot scanner or ballot box, that voter shall be deemed to have voted and may not thereafter vote again. A sign shall be placed at the exit of the enclosed space that informs every voter that ballots may not be removed from the enclosed space. Any paper ballot that is removed from the room encompassing the enclosed space shall not be counted and shall be marked as spoiled by a poll officer.

10.

(a) If a voter discovers that the ballot presented on the electronic ballot marker is not correct or, for a partisan primary, is not the ballot that the voter desired to vote, the voter shall immediately notify a poll officer. The poll officer shall cancel or void the ballot on the electronic ballot marker without attempting in any manner to see how the voter has voted and shall then take the necessary steps to provide the voter with the correct ballot and make any necessary corrections to the voter certificate of the voter, the electors list, and the numbered list of voters. If the error is due to equipment malfunction, the poll officer shall document the incident on a form developed by the Secretary of State. The poll manager shall inform the election superintendent immediately if one or more electronic ballot markers are associated with a significant number of incidents.

(b) If, while reviewing his or her printed ballot, the voter discovers that the printed ballot does not contain the proper ballot selections or that the voter was not issued the proper ballot, the voter shall immediately inform a poll officer. The poll officer shall spoil the paper ballot and take the necessary steps to allow the voter to make his or her selections again on the electronic ballot marker and cause the correct ballot to be issued. If the error is due to equipment malfunction, the poll officer shall document the incident on a form developed by the Secretary of State. The poll manager shall inform the election superintendent immediately if one or more electronic ballot markers are associated with a significant number of incidents.

(c) If the voter places his or her paper ballot into the ballot scanner or ballot box prior to notifying the poll officials of any errors in the ballot, the voter shall be deemed to have voted and shall not be permitted to cast another ballot.

11.

(a) If any voting system component malfunctions during the day of a primary, election, or runoff, the poll manager shall immediately notify the election superintendent and shall not allow any voter to use the component until and unless the malfunction is corrected. The poll manager shall utilize appropriate backup procedures so that voting is not interrupted due to any equipment malfunctions. The election superintendent shall immediately arrange for the repair of the voting system component or shall provide a replacement component as soon as practicable. A replacement component shall not be used unless it has been appropriately tested prior to its use.

(b) In the event that a ballot scanner malfunctions, the voter shall place their voted ballot in the emergency bin connected to the ballot box. The ballots in the emergency bin shall be counted when the ballot scanner is properly functioning, by a replacement ballot scanner brought to the polling place, or, if neither are available, by another scanner at the county elections office. Poll officers may scan ballots placed into the emergency bin through the ballot scanner or a replacement ballot scanner when doing so will not interfere with voting. A voter placing his or her ballot into the emergency bin is considered to have voted that ballot and shall not be permitted to cast another ballot.

(c) Accredited poll watchers shall be allowed to observe the process described in this rule; however, they must do so in a manner that does not interfere with poll officials or voters.

12. Polling Place Wait Time Recordings

(a) On the day of any state or federal general primary, election, or runoff therefrom, the chief manager of a precinct shall measure and record the time a voter waits in line prior to checking into vote.

(b) The wait times shall be measured a minimum of three times while voting is occurring, in accordance with the following specifications:

i. Morning wait times shall be measured only during the hours between 7:00AM and 11:00AM.

ii. Midday wait times shall be measured only during the hours between 11:00AM and 3:00PM.

iii. Evening wait times shall be measured only during the hours of 3:00pm and 7:00PM.

(c) Such results shall be recorded on a form provided by the Secretary of State and provided electronically in a manner determined by the Secretary of State.

Notes

Ga. Comp. R. & Regs. R. 183-1-12-.11

O.C.G.A. §§ 21-2-31, 21-2-263, 21-2-409, 21-2-410.

Original Rule entitled "Conducting Elections" adopted. F. Jan. 23, 2020; eff. Feb. 12, 2020. Amended: F. Mar. 2, 2020; eff. Mar. 22, 2020. Amended: F. Sep. 22, 2021; eff. Oct. 12, 2021.