Residents tell DeKalb elections board voter rolls have errors; one speaker urges review of ERIC participation

Three members of the public addressed the DeKalb County Board of Registration and Elections on Jan. 8, urging the board to protect voting access and fix data problems on the voter rolls.

Cheryl Dudley, a DeKalb resident of more than 40 years, opened public comment by thanking the board for its work ensuring "free and fair elections," and said voting is a right that must be defended.

Dr. Kendra Bugalski told the board the voter rolls contain "numerous records with impossible birth years" and other flawed or missing data that can block people from correcting registrations online because access to correction forms requires a birth date. "ERIC's bylaws provide only vague assurances of privacy protection," she said, and expressed discomfort with a private nonprofit holding multi-state voter registration data. She urged the board to support improved intake procedures and robust verification to correct existing registrations.

Michael Beach, a DeKalb poll manager, thanked staff for changes in 2025 and urged stepped-up public education to counter misinformation and explain polling procedures and post-election audits so voters understand how ballots are handled.

The board did not take action during public comment but heard the requests; Director Smith later presented registration totals and discussed data-maintenance processes in response during the director's report.

Next steps: concerns raised will be part of ongoing department work around intake, outreach and list maintenance.