Some Georgia voters received mail last week notifying them that their registrations have been made “inactive” because new precinct cards were undeliverable by the Postal Service.
But not to worry: As long as these voters are registered to vote at their current address, they can still participate in the November election.
Under Georgia law, voters labeled as “inactive” retain the same rights as active voters. They can still cast a ballot and request an absentee ballot, and any participation in elections will restore their voting status to “active.” Voters can check their registration status through the state’s My Voter Page.
Labeling voters as “inactive” is a normal government process to identify people who might have moved. Their registrations remain valid unless they don’t participate in the next two federal elections, contact county election officials or request to have their registrations canceled.
Statewide, over 227,000 voter registrations are “inactive” because of returned mail, according to state registration records. The largest number of those “inactive” voters are in DeKalb County, which has the state’s fourth-highest population and over 38,000 registrations flagged because of returned mail.
Other reasons registrations can be declared inactive include changes of address and not casting ballots for several years.
Credit: Steve Vellines
Credit: Steve Vellines
In several cases, voters in DeKalb County were alarmed that they received the notifications even though they hadn’t moved away. It’s unclear why their mail was returned to sender by the Postal Service — especially when they received the follow-up letter informing them they were now “inactive” voters.
The issue in DeKalb began in April when the election office sent new precinct cards to voters whose precinct name, polling location or districts had changed. Some of those precinct cards were returned and marked as “undeliverable.”
“You are receiving this notice because our records indicate that our most recent efforts to mail you voter registration or elections information has been returned by United States Postal Service (USPS) as Undeliverable Mail, indicating that you may have moved to another residential address or are no longer receiving mail at the mailing address we have on file,” the notice stated.
The letter, sent in July, came from a vendor for the secretary of state’s office and warned voters to update their status within 30 days of receipt. The letter said voters can complete a form on the back of the letter and send it back with updated voter registration information or update their information on the official Georgia voter information My Voter Page at mvp.sos.ga.gov.
Steve Villines of Tucker said he received the letter last week and initially thought it was fake because he voted in the primary runoff election in June. He later checked his My Voter Page to ensure his status remained active.
DeKalb’s election office is committed to ensuring that every eligible voter can cast a ballot, and being “inactive” won’t impede them, said Karli Swift, chairwoman of the county’s election board. DeKalb is working to find why it has a higher number of “inactive” voters, she said.
“We understand the confusion the inactive voter status may bring, but rest assured, DeKalb is working diligently to address this issue,” Swift said. “We are stressing that inactive does not mean ineligible to vote. Casting a ballot this election will automatically help rectify this issue.”
Voters can contact their county election offices with questions.
There are nearly 8.1 million registered voters in Georgia, including over 1 million inactive voters.
Are you registered to vote?
Georgia voters can check their registrations through the state’s My Voter Page at mvp.sos.ga.gov. Unregistered voters can sign up online through a link on the My Voter Page. Registration is also offered through driver’s license offices, county election offices and voter registration drives. The deadline to register in Georgia for the Nov. 5 election is Oct. 7.
