Current:Home > FinanceGeorgia elections chief doesn’t expect Helene damage to have big effect on voting in the state-InfoLens
Georgia elections chief doesn’t expect Helene damage to have big effect on voting in the state
View Date:2024-12-23 14:40:19
ATLANTA (AP) — Georgia’s top elections official said Monday that he doesn’t expect damage from Hurricane Helene to cause major disruptions in next month’s general election in the state.
After coming ashore in Florida, Helene hit Georgia hard, leaving destruction and power outages in its wake. Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger said during a news conference that, for the most part, elections offices in the state’s 159 counties did not sustain serious damage, and no equipment was affected.
“What has been on everyone’s mind is what will happen to elections,” Raffensperger said. “Good news: Absentee ballots are going out this week as scheduled, and early voting will start next Tuesday, on Oct. 15.”
Blake Evans, the elections director for the secretary of state’s office, said county election officials have been dealing with power and internet outages in some parts of the state. But he said emergency management officials have helped prioritize elections offices to make sure they get power restored, and by Monday there were “minimal, if any, power outages to election offices across the state.”
Election equipment testing and poll worker training was paused in some locations immediately after the storm tore through, but that activity has largely resumed, Evans said. County officials are still assessing the roughly 2,400 Election Day polling locations across the state, and at least three — one each in Columbia, Lowndes and Richmond counties — will have to be changed because of damage, he said, adding that updates will be posted on the secretary of state’s website.
Gabriel Sterling, chief operating officer in the secretary of state’s office, said that “a handful” of U.S. Postal Service offices remain closed in areas hard hit by the hurricane. It looks like just under 700 absentee ballots could be affected by that, and they’re working to either make it so people can pick up their ballots at another nearby post office or to arrange an alternative delivery method, Sterling said.
While absentee ballots are delivered to voters by mail, Sterling noted they don’t have to be returned by mail. He recommended returning absentee ballots to elections offices by hand to ensure that they arrive on time.
With hurricane season still underway, uncertainty remains, Sterling said. Hurricane Milton, swirling now in the Gulf of Mexico, is gaining momentum as it speeds toward Florida. It is expected to be a major hurricane by the time it reaches the Sunshine State on Wednesday.
But as of now — if no other storm strikes Georgia and causes problems — Sterling said he expects things to run smoothly.
“The bad part is the storm hit at all,” he said of Helene. “The good part is it hit far enough out for us to be able to recover and make plans, so I think most people should be OK.”
veryGood! (147)
Related
- Black women notch historic Senate wins in an election year defined by potential firsts
- Nevada abortion-rights measure has enough signatures for November ballot, supporters say
- Best cities to live in the U.S., according U.S. News & World Report
- Matthew Perry’s Death Still Being Investigated By Authorities Over Ketamine Source
- It's cozy gaming season! Video game updates you may have missed, including Stardew Valley
- Pedigree dog food recall affects hundreds of bags in 4 states. See if you're among them.
- Former Arizona GOP chair Kelli Ward and others set to be arraigned in fake elector case
- DOJ sues Oklahoma over new law setting state penalties for those living in the US illegally
- Jessica Simpson's Husband Eric Johnson Steps Out Ringless Amid Split Speculation
- North Carolina bill seeks to restrict public and media access to criminal autopsy reports
Ranking
- John Krasinski named People's Sexiest Man Alive for 2024
- Wegovy, Saxenda study reveals surprising trend for weight loss drugs
- U.S. troops will complete their withdrawal from Niger by mid-September, the Pentagon says
- Driver was going 131 mph before wreck that killed Illinois 17-year-old ahead of graduation: Police
- FBI raids New York City apartment of Polymarket CEO Shayne Coplan, reports say
- Carvings on Reese's packaging aren't on actual chocolates, consumer lawsuit claims
- Red Lobster files for bankruptcy days after closing dozens of locations across the US
- Ivan Boesky, notorious trader who served time for insider trading, dead at 87
Recommendation
-
Kendall Jenner Is Back to Being a Brunette After Ditching Blonde Hair
-
Rare $400 Rubyglow pineapple was introduced to the US this month. It already sold out.
-
20 book-to-screen adaptations in 2024: ‘Bridgerton,’ ‘It Ends With Us,’ ’Wicked,’ more
-
WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange can appeal against U.S. extradition, U.K. court rules
-
Ben Foster Files for Divorce From Laura Prepon After 6 Years of Marriage
-
‘Historic’ Advisory Opinion on Climate Change Says Countries Must Prevent Greenhouse Gasses From Harming Oceans
-
Attorneys stop representing a Utah mom and children’s grief author accused of killing her husband
-
Progressive prosecutor in Portland, Oregon, seeks to fend off tough-on-crime challenger in DA race