Richmond County certifies May 19 election after agreeing to rescan identified absentee batches
May 23, 2026 | Augusta City, Richmond County, Georgia
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The Richmond County Elections Board voted on Monday to rescan identified absentee ballot batches and then certified the results of the May 19, 2026 general primary and nonpartisan election.
Travis Doss, an elections staff member, told the board staff found an eight-ballot discrepancy in absentee-by-mail totals during a routine reconciliation and traced it to how two-page absentee ballots were handled. "When counting a two-page ballot, page 1 acts as the header and gives credit; page 2 is just the second page," Doss said, explaining that in some duplication workflows the scanner counted a blank page 1 as a voter. He added that the overall advance-in-person totals matched ("we had 17,468 ballots that were cast, and we had 17,468 people who voted").
After discussing options, a board member moved that staff rescan the specific batches containing the duplicated absentee ballots rather than rescanning all ballots. The motion was seconded and carried by voice vote.
The board then heard extensive tallies read into the record for federal, state and local contests, as required by law. After the results were read aloud, a member moved to certify the numbers "as read," and the board approved the certification by voice vote.
Separately, staff presented and the board executed a resolution recording the totals and placing on record the continuation (reimposition) of a 1¢ sales tax as reflected by the election returns. The board reviewed the resolution, verified the totals and signed the document.
Why it matters: The rescanning vote addresses a specific, narrow discrepancy and was intended to ensure that the number of ballots counted matches the number of voters credited before formal certification. The certification completes the county's formal step to make the election results official for recordkeeping and next steps, including runoff scheduling.
What’s next: Staff will rescan the identified batches and report results; the board scheduled pre-certification and certification meetings related to the June 16 runoff and other post-election steps.
Travis Doss, an elections staff member, told the board staff found an eight-ballot discrepancy in absentee-by-mail totals during a routine reconciliation and traced it to how two-page absentee ballots were handled. "When counting a two-page ballot, page 1 acts as the header and gives credit; page 2 is just the second page," Doss said, explaining that in some duplication workflows the scanner counted a blank page 1 as a voter. He added that the overall advance-in-person totals matched ("we had 17,468 ballots that were cast, and we had 17,468 people who voted").
After discussing options, a board member moved that staff rescan the specific batches containing the duplicated absentee ballots rather than rescanning all ballots. The motion was seconded and carried by voice vote.
The board then heard extensive tallies read into the record for federal, state and local contests, as required by law. After the results were read aloud, a member moved to certify the numbers "as read," and the board approved the certification by voice vote.
Separately, staff presented and the board executed a resolution recording the totals and placing on record the continuation (reimposition) of a 1¢ sales tax as reflected by the election returns. The board reviewed the resolution, verified the totals and signed the document.
Why it matters: The rescanning vote addresses a specific, narrow discrepancy and was intended to ensure that the number of ballots counted matches the number of voters credited before formal certification. The certification completes the county's formal step to make the election results official for recordkeeping and next steps, including runoff scheduling.
What’s next: Staff will rescan the identified batches and report results; the board scheduled pre-certification and certification meetings related to the June 16 runoff and other post-election steps.
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