Fulton County sets recount schedule, clarifies ballot-recap practice and new voter-numbering rule

Fulton County elections officials on June 11 told the Board of Registration and Elections they will begin a statewide recount for the Public Service Commission District 3 contest on June 18 and that county staff expect the recount to take two to three days to complete.

Director Williams said the Secretary of State has called the recount and that Fulton’s staff will work 9 a.m.–5 p.m. until the work is complete. “We anticipate it should take two to three days to complete this process,” she said, and added that parties may send poll watchers to observe while county teams do the counting.

Why it matters: The recount could require the board to re-certify election results if totals change. The board moved and approved advertising a special called certification meeting to follow the regular certification meeting so the county can re-certify promptly if recount results require it.

What staff told the board: The registration and operations reports showed ongoing runoff work and the department’s May activity. Manager/Chief Glenn reported voter rolls for May at 742,278 active voters, 107,210 inactive voters, for a total of 849,488 registered voters; staff also described daily processing of applications and list maintenance.

New State rule on numbered lists: The board discussed a recently adopted State Election Board rule requiring counties to keep a contemporaneous numbered list of voters at precincts as a backup to poll pads. Attorney Puda told the board the new rule contemplates a handwritten form kept in real time as voters check in, and that the Secretary of State’s office will likely issue a uniform form or guidance. “Essentially…it’s going to be a handwritten list of electors,” the attorney said, and staff noted privacy trade-offs when such lists are too consolidated.

Ballot-recap sheets and records requests: Member Adams told the board she submitted an open-records request for ballot recap sheets from the May 19 election and received a response saying no responsive originals were available. Staff clarified that original physical recap sheets are sent to the Secretary of State and that Fulton maintains daily electronic recap spreadsheets that are emailed by polling locations and posted as daily totals. Staff invited the member to resubmit an ORR specifying that she wants both the hand-written recap sheets and the electronic files; they said they will provide both copies when requested.

Rescanning and reconciliation procedures: Board members pressed staff on how the county verifies ballots before certification. Staff explained the distinction between physically counting paper ballots and tabulating scanner results: a physical count is used during reconciliation to identify missing ballots or double scans. If a batch’s scanner report and the counted physical ballots differ, staff will reabulate or rescan batches to find and correct double scans or jams before the board certifies results.

What’s next: The board approved advertisement of a special called certification meeting if re-certification becomes necessary after the recount and directed staff to continue implementing guidance on the State Election Board’s numbered-list rule. Member Adams requested a discussion of rescanning procedures on the election-night agenda so members can review reconciliation steps and timing before certification.