Georgia’s election process just got a major shakeup, and not everyone is thrilled. In a move that’s bound to impact the 2024 presidential election, the Georgia State Election Board narrowly passed a new rule requiring that all paper ballots be counted by hand on election night. That’s right—no more relying solely on machines. Instead, three different poll workers will have to count each ballot until their numbers align. This decision, approved by a tight 3-2 vote, is being cheered by President Trump but faces significant pushback from both Democrats and some Republicans within the state.
The rule is designed to add another layer of transparency to the vote-counting process, which Trump and his supporters have long claimed is riddled with issues. Unsurprisingly, Trump’s former spokesperson, Liz Harrington, celebrated the move on X (formerly Twitter), calling it a “HUGE win” and lauding the board for standing up to opposition from what she called the “Fake News” and state officials like Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger.
GREAT NEWS!
GA State Election Board passes 3-2 resolution 181-1-12-.12
HAND COUNT at precinct level to ensure the totals match with the machines
This is a HUGE win and was opposed by the Fake News, the Left, and Raffensperger pic.twitter.com/12FxvV9Tf4
— Liz Harrington (@realLizUSA) September 20, 2024
Now, Raffensperger isn’t exactly a fan of this new rule. He expressed his concerns in an interview, pointing out that hand-counting ballots could cause serious delays in reporting results. “Everything we’ve done for the last six years has been about speeding up the process and giving voters results quicker,” he said. And he’s not alone. Georgia Attorney General Chris Carr’s office issued a memo declaring that this new rule isn’t even legally grounded, calling it “not tethered to any statute.” In other words, they believe the board overstepped its authority with this change.
For those keeping score, Georgia has been a battleground for election controversies ever since the 2020 election. After the state flipped narrowly to Biden, Trump and his allies raised all kinds of red flags, from absentee ballot issues to claims of ballots being counted after the deadline. And who could forget the infamous video from Atlanta’s State Farm Arena, where some claim election workers continued to process ballots after observers were sent home? Trump supporters saw that as definitive proof of fraud, while state officials insisted that nothing improper occurred.
Even after hand and machine recounts affirmed Biden’s victory by about 12,000 votes, many Trump supporters still believe the 2020 election wasn’t handled fairly. This new hand-counting rule is likely to appeal to those who demand even more scrutiny of Georgia’s election process, but it’s clear that not everyone is on board. The big question now is whether this change will actually improve transparency—or just slow down the process and sow even more confusion come Election Night 2024.
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