Atlanta, GA — A lawsuit aimed at blocking Georgia counties from offering weekend voting services was dismissed by a judge in Georgia on Saturday. The lawsuit, initiated by the Republican Party in Fulton County, sought to prevent the county — a Democratic stronghold in Atlanta comprising 11% of Georgia’s electorate — from allowing voters to drop off their mail-in ballots over the weekend.
Fulton County, which has a significant impact on state elections due to its population, planned to open four election offices from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. on the first weekend of November to accept absentee ballots in person. These actions prompted legal challenges on the premise that continuing to accept ballots after the early voting period, which ended the previous Friday, was against the state’s electoral regulations.
During an urgent court hearing on Saturday, Alex Kaufman, the attorney representing the plaintiffs, argued that voters shouldn’t be able to hand-deliver absentee ballots during the weekend window, suggesting that such allowances could skirt legal boundaries set by state law.
However, Fulton County Superior Court Judge Kevin Farmer ultimately rejected these claims, affirming that voters are indeed permitted to hand in their absentee ballots over the weekend. This ruling aligns with longstanding practices within the state, where election offices have traditionally accepted mail ballots directly from voters.
In the wake of the court’s decision, Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger took to social media on his X account to solidify the understanding that counties have the discretion to receive absentee ballots in person at government offices. His statement also highlighted ongoing efforts to work with counties and political parties to oversee these activities transparently and within the confines of state law.
The judgment allows Fulton County residents to continue dropping off their absentee ballots in person until 7 p.m. on the upcoming Election Night, emphasizing the locality’s commitment to facilitating accessible voting options for its electorate.
This decision represents another chapter in the ongoing debate over voting accessibility and regulation, particularly in swing states like Georgia, where voting procedures are closely scrutinized.
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