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Fulton County to ask state to count early votes before polls close

Fulton County wants to start counting early votes before polls have closed, and is asking the state for help. JOHN SPINK /JSPINK@AJC.COM AJC FILE PHOTO
Fulton County wants to start counting early votes before polls have closed, and is asking the state for help. JOHN SPINK /JSPINK@AJC.COM AJC FILE PHOTO
By Arielle Kass
Jan 10, 2018

Fulton County, which has said getting more timely election results is a priority in 2018, plans to ask the state for help.

The county's legislative priorities include a request to change state law to allow the county to begin processing early votes while the polls are still open. Currently, no voting machines can be opened until the polls have closed.

With hundreds of early voting machines to break down, Fulton County spokesperson Jessica Corbitt said the time needed to tabulate those votes can delay reporting results county-wide. Fulton has often come under fire for delayed reporting of results.

County commissioners said they were in favor of making a change, but were concerned about security. They want to ensure that results remain secure until after the polls are closed.

“There can be no question I strongly support the goal of this legislation,” Commissioner Emma Darnell said.

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In other Fulton news:

On Tuesday, the council decided not to vote on overriding the Mayor’s veto.

About the Author

Arielle Kass covers Gwinnett County for The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. She started at the paper in 2010, and has covered business and local government beats around metro Atlanta. Arielle is a graduate of Emory University.

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