Despite dozens of phony bomb threats targeting polling locations across Fulton County, the Carter Center described last week’s county election operation as “smooth, transparent and well-organized.”
The center said Thursday that its election observers reported a consistent, accessible and well-run process in Georgia’s most populous county. There were “no significant irregularities,” observers found, “despite an external attempt to disrupt the elections through nearly 40 bomb threats.”
The threats were found not to be credible and were cleared quickly. In all, five polling locations were briefly closed down, but reopened with an extension to make up for any lost time.
Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger said the hoax threats that targeted polling locations in Fulton, and elsewhere, originated in Russia.
County elections officials seemingly avoided a repeat of the 2020 election, which was marred by long lines and hours-long wait times at some Fulton precincts. The Democratic bastion also came under fire in the last election cycle when then-President Donald Trump’s attorney, Rudy Giuliani, falsely alleged that election workers were counting fraudulent ballots.
This year, monitors observed Fulton’s poll worker training, equipment testing, absentee ballot processing, advance and Election Day voting, as well as the tabulation of results and chain of custody protocols, the Carter Center said in a news release. It commended election staff, poll workers, law enforcement officers, and board members for their work on behalf of Fulton’s voters.
The center said that no election is perfect, however, and that its election observation mission would include some recommendations in its final report.
Credit: Ben Gray for the Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Credit: Ben Gray for the Atlanta Journal-Constitution
“I have been observing tabulation for 30 years, and I have never seen a more orderly and organized process in Fulton County than I observed Tuesday night,” team member Matt Mashburn said in a statement. Mashburn is former acting chair of the State Election Board and a longtime poll watcher for the Republican Party.
Fulton’s election operations were under the microscope this year, but Commission Chairman Robb Pitts gave his county an A grade.
“The results of today’s election prove, beyond a shadow of a doubt, that Fulton County was ready for the 2024 election,” Pitts said last week.
