All primaries and elections in this state shall be conducted by ballot, except when voting machines are used as provided by law. A ballot may be electronic or printed on paper. All ballots used in any primary or election shall be provided by the superintendent or municipal governing authority in accordance with this article, and only official ballots furnished by the superintendent or governing authority shall be cast or counted in any primary or election in any precinct in which ballots are used.

(Ga. L. 1962, p. 618, § 1; Code 1933, § 34-1101, enacted by Ga. L. 1964, Ex. Sess., p. 26, § 1; Ga. L. 1983, p. 140, § 1; Ga. L. 1998, p. 295, § 1; Ga. L. 2002, p. 598, § 2-2; Ga. L. 2005, p. 253, § 33/HB 244.)

JUDICIAL DECISIONS

Omission of directions on ballots.

- A trial court properly denied a losing candidate's petition to contest the election results of a mayoral election held in a town as the losing candidate failed to meet the burden of establishing that any misconduct, fraud, or irregularity occurred that placed the result of the election in doubt based on the county clerk signing the document reflecting the election results, instead of the election superintendent, and the clerk's failure to purge the voters list, which was not an obligation of the election supervisor anyway. The omission of the statutory language providing directions on how to cast a vote likewise did not necessitate a new election since the poll manager testified that the poll manager and other poll workers instructed each voter how to fill out the ballot and established that there was no concern or confusion by the voters regarding the ballot. Lewis v. O'Day, 284 Ga. 423, 667 S.E.2d 594 (2008).

Methods of voting.

- O.C.G.A. § 21-2-280, by exempting electronic voting from the requirement that elections be conducted by ballot, does not violate Ga. Const. 1983, Art. II, Sec. I, Par. I because nothing in Ga. Const. 1983, Art. II, Sec. I, Para. I limits voting to some method or methods under which each voter indicates his or her choice or choices on a separate piece of paper issued to him or her for that purpose; it contemplates that the legislature shall provide a method, or methods, of voting at elections in such a way that not even those who count or tabulate the votes will know how any particular voter voted. Favorito v. Handel, 285 Ga. 795, 684 S.E.2d 257 (2009).

RESEARCH REFERENCES

Am. Jur. 2d.

- 26 Am. Jur. 2d, Elections, §§ 281, 283.

C.J.S.

- 29 C.J.S., Elections, §§ 262, 264.

ALR.

- Failure to make available to voters official ballots, or ballots conforming to requirements, as affecting validity of election of public officer, 165 A.L.R. 1263.

Syfert Injury Law Firm

2018 Georgia Code 21-2-280 | Car Wreck Lawyer

TITLE 21 ELECTIONS

Section 2. Elections and Primaries Generally, 21-2-1 through 21-2-604.

ARTICLE 8 VOTING BY BALLOT

21-2-280. Requirement as to conduct of primaries and elections by ballot; requirement as to use of official ballots only.