The Georgia State Election Board, by a narrow vote of three to two, has implemented a new regulation mandating a match between the total votes tallied and the recorded number of participating voters for any election. This move necessitates an investigation and resolution of any numerical inconsistencies before the official certification of election results.
This development is seen as a win for advocates of electoral integrity in Georgia. According to the regulation, the State Election Board is required to convene soon after an election to examine the returns from each precinct.
The board will be responsible for assembling a comprehensive list detailing every voter’s participation method in the election, categorized into Election Day in-person voting, advanced voting, absentee voting, and provisional voting. Additionally, the rule stipulates the counting of “unique voter IDs from every precinct.”
It is required under this regulation that the vote totals in each precinct must reconcile with the counts of votes. The rule explicitly states: “In any precinct where ballots outnumber unique votes, the Board will identify the voting method responsible for the inconsistency.”
Should the discrepancy remain unresolved, “the Board will devise a fair method to calculate the votes” as per state legislation. Any detected fraud during this process necessitates reporting to the appropriate district attorney.
