Georgia Secretary of State Karen Handel Issues Important Election Day Reminders

Atlanta—Georgia Secretary of State Karen Handel today issued the following reminders to all voters participating in person in the Tuesday, November 4, 2008 General Election.

Polls will be open from 7:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m. on Tuesday, November 4, 2008. Georgia law provides that any voter in line at 7:00 p.m. shall be permitted to vote. Voters can find registration information, including polling locations and legislative districts, by using the Secretary of State’s Poll Locator at http://www.sos.georgia.gov/Elections or by calling (888) 265-1115. 

Voters participating in the election on Election Day will be required to show one of the following six forms of photo ID:

• A Georgia driver’s license, even if expired;
• Any valid state or federal government issued photo ID, including a free Voter ID Card issued by your county registrar or Georgia Department of Driver Services (DDS);
• Valid U.S. passport;
• Valid employee photo ID from any branch, department, agency, or entity of the U.S. Government, Georgia, or any county, municipality, board, authority, or other entity of this state;
• Valid U.S. military photo ID; or
• Valid tribal photo ID.
• If a voter does not have one of these forms of photo identification, the voter can obtain a free voter ID card at their county registrar’s office or the Georgia Department of Driver Services.

Anyone with additional questions about Georgia’s photo ID requirement can visit www.GAPhotoID.com or call toll free (877) 725-9797.

Mail-in ballots must be received by your county registrar no later than close of the polls on Election Day. Voters can hand-deliver a mail-in ballot, but Georgia law prohibits anyone other than the voter from personal delivery of a voted mail-in ballot, unless the voter is disabled, in which case a family member can deliver the ballot.

If a voter has in his possession a mail-in ballot but has not yet returned it, the voter can bring the ballot to his precinct, return it to the poll manager, and vote in person instead. If the voter has not received the mail-in ballot from the county elections office, or if the voter already returned the ballot, but the county elections office has not yet received the ballot, the voter can appear in person before the registrar or absentee ballot clerk, and request in writing that the ballot be marked “Cancelled.” The registrar or clerk will then notify the voter’s precinct manager, and the voter can then vote in person at his precinct.

County elections results will be certified after Friday’s deadline for military and overseas ballots and after county elections offices have resolved provisional and challenged ballots.

In Georgia, 2,020,839 voters cast ballots during the early voting period. Eighty-eight percent of these voters cast their ballot in person using photo ID. Forty counties experienced early voting turnout of 40 percent or higher; and six counties had 50 percent or higher voter turnout.

More than 15,000 poll workers will staff over 3,000 voting precincts on Election Day. Additionally, the Secretary of State’s Office of Inspector General and the Kennesaw State University Center for Election Systems will deploy over 150 election monitors, including investigators and technicians to serve as rapid responders to assist the counties and voters with issues or questions. 

Karen Handel was sworn in as Secretary of State in January 2007. The Secretary of State's office offers important services to our citizens and our business community. Among the office’s wide-ranging responsibilities, the Secretary of State is charged with conducting efficient and secure elections, the registration of corporations, and the regulation of securities and professional license holders. The office also oversees the Georgia Archives and the Capitol Museum.