TITLE 21 ELECTIONS

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

ARTICLE 10 ABSENTEE VOTING

21-2-388. Cancellation of absentee ballots of electors who are present in election precinct during primaries and elections.

When an absentee ballot which has been voted shall be returned to and received by the board of registrars, it shall be deemed to have been voted then and there; and no other ballot shall be issued to the same elector. If an elector has requested to vote by absentee ballot and has not received such absentee ballot, has such ballot in his or her possession, or has returned such ballot but the registrars have not received such ballot, such elector may have the absentee ballot canceled and vote in person on the day of the primary, election, or runoff in one of the following ways:

1. If the elector is in possession of the ballot, by surrendering the absentee ballot to the poll manager of the precinct in which the elector's name appears on the electors list and then being permitted to vote the regular ballot. The poll manager shall mark "Canceled" and the date and time across the face of the absentee ballot and shall initial same. The poll manager shall also make appropriate notations beside the name of the elector on the electors list. All such canceled absentee ballots shall be returned with other ballots to the superintendent; or
2. If the elector has not received the ballot or if the elector has returned the ballot but the registrars have not received the ballot, by appearing in person before the registrars or the absentee ballot clerk and requesting in writing that the envelope containing the elector's absentee ballot be marked "Canceled." After having satisfied themselves as to the identity of such elector, the registrars or the absentee ballot clerk shall grant the request and shall notify the managers of the elector's precinct as to such action so as to permit the elector to vote in person in that precinct. If the absentee ballot is in the mail or its exact location is unknown, the registrar or the absentee ballot clerk shall write "Canceled" beside the elector's name on the master list of absentee voters and shall cancel the ballot itself as soon as it is received. Canceled absentee ballots shall be disposed of in the same manner as provided in subsection (a) of Code Section 21-2-386 for absentee ballots returned too late to be cast.

(Code 1933, § 34-1409, enacted by Ga. L. 1964, Ex. Sess., p. 26, § 1; Ga. L. 1974, p. 71, § 12; Ga. L. 1981, p. 1718, § 9; Ga. L. 1982, p. 1512, § 5; Ga. L. 1994, p. 1406, § 23; Ga. L. 1997, p. 590, § 33; Ga. L. 1998, p. 295, § 1; Ga. L. 2007, p. 544, § 5/SB 194.)

The 2007 amendment, effective July 1, 2007, rewrote the introductory paragraph; in paragraph (1), inserted "If the elector is in possession of the ballot," at the beginning, and added "or" to the end; and, in paragraph (2), inserted "If the elector has not received the ballot or if the elector has returned the ballot but the registrars have not received the ballot," at the beginning and deleted the former third sentence which read: "If the absentee ballot is in the possession of the registrars or the absentee ballot clerk, it shall be promptly marked 'Canceled' and the date and time written across the face of the envelope."