Georgia wants you to vote by mail, if you want

By Maggie Lee

Georgia will mail out 6.9 million absentee ballot applications for May elections.

The nudge toward voting by mail is an effort to protect public health in a time of COVID-19, said Republican Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger, the state’s top election official, in a press release announcing the move.

People who want to vote by mail will need to fill out the application, put a stamp on it and send it back; or return it by fax or email. Then they’ll receive an actual ballot in the mail.

Folks who are over 65 or who have a disability will be able to get a ballot for all the elections this year. Everyone else will get a ballot just for the May election.

People who want to vote in person will still find their polling places open on May 19, and on the early voting days that counties set.

The May ballot includes primaries for the president, for the Georgia Legislature and for numerous judicial and other elections.

“Times of turbulence and upheaval like the one we Georgians face require decisive action if the liberties we hold so dear are to be preserved,” Raffensperger said in the press release

The Democratic Party of Georgia was quick to thank Raffensperger for the mail effort — but also said that more needs to be done.

The DPG will advocate for policies like automatically sending all registered voters ballots to vote by mail for every election this cycle, including the November general election and prepaying postage on all applications and ballots, according to a party press release.