Secretary of State Handel Launches Website for Voters with Disabilities

Atlanta— Georgia Secretary of State Karen Handel today launched the Access for Voters with Disabilities section of her agency’s Elections Division website, specially designed to provide elections information and resources to voters with disabilities. The site was constructed to help ensure that information technology is accessible to people with disabilities, including access via screen reader. The website address is: http://www.sos.ga.gov/elections/disability_voting.htm.

“This website provides voters with disabilities the information they need to fully participate in elections, both in person and by mail,” Secretary Handel said. “By maximizing technology and information resources, we can guarantee access to the elections process for all voters.”

The website contains information on registering to vote; in-person voting assistance; in-person assistive voting devices; seated voting; advance and early voting; and photo identification requirements.

The Access for Voters with Disabilities website was created as part of the Secretary of State’s commitment to increasing access for the disabled to participate in the elections process, and educating individuals with disabilities about available resources.

In 2008, the Secretary of State’s office dispersed nearly $165,000 in Help America Vote Act grants to Georgia counties for projects to improve voting facility access. This year, the Secretary of State’s Elections Division will launch a multi-tiered training program for county and local election officials on a full range of accessibility issues. Additionally, the Elections Division is partnering with the Georgia Health Care Association to increase elections education among administrators and employees of nursing home and assisted living centers.

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.