Board reviews May 19 primary calendar and legislative updates including QR-code and hand-marked ballot bills

The Richmond County Board of Elections received an operational calendar update for the May 19, 2026 general primary and nonpartisan election and a report on state legislation that could affect voting systems and rule-making.

Calendar and logistics: Director Doss reviewed key dates: March 20 precinct-change deadline; March 31 start for UOCAVA (military/overseas) ballots; April 6 deadline to publish sample ballots (proofs pending); April 13 start for LNA notices; April 15–20 poll-worker training; April 20 voter-registration deadline and first day to mail civilian absentee ballots; April 27 start of advanced voting; advanced voting at four locations for the primary (hours 8:30 a.m.–6:00 p.m., Monday–Friday, two Saturdays and one Sunday); the board previously approved holding the pre-certification and certification meetings during the week after the election; and a risk-limiting audit is scheduled for May 28.

Legislative overview: Doss and staff highlighted legislation tracked by the Georgia Association of Voter Registration and Election Officials. Items of note included a bill (SB568) tied to prior changes (SB189) and discussion of a requirement to remove QR codes from printed ballots by July 1, 2026; that measure failed to crossover as a standalone bill but portions may reappear in other bills. The board was also briefed on SB214 (referred to in discussion as a hand‑marked paper ballot bill that has passed the Senate and moved to the House) and on efforts by the association to seek legislative relief (e.g., delaying a July 1 QR-code removal deadline to 2028) to provide time to transition systems and retrain workers and voters. Other bills discussed included House Bill 728 (rule-making moratorium changes) and HB1467 (changes to voter registration at the DMV that would move from an automatic register-unless-opt-out model to an opt-in process).

Board response: The board received the update as information by motion and vote. Members asked staff to continue tracking the bills and to flag any statutory deadlines that would create hard operational timelines for equipment purchases, vendor transitions and training prior to the November election.

Training reminder: The board was also reminded that the statewide Gabrio conference (elections training) will be March 22–25 in Athens; materials will be available for members who cannot attend.