LOWNDES COUNTY, GA — A paper ballot bill in Georgia recently failed by two votes, but a state law banning QR-coded ballots takes effect on July 1, renewing a debate on how state elections should be run.
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Georgia Senate Bill 568 would have required hand-marked paper ballots statewide, but the proposal failed by just two votes, even as a separate state law banning QR-coded ballots takes effect July 1.
When you head to the polls in Georgia, the process probably feels familiar: just a few clicks on a screen. But a debate at the State Capitol has neighbors asking whether Georgia should move away from its current voting system.
Lawmakers in the Georgia State Senate recently voted down Georgia Senate Bill 568, a proposal that would have required voters across Georgia to switch from touchscreen voting machines to hand-marked paper ballots. The bill failed by just two votes.
Right now, Georgia voters use touchscreen machines that print a paper ballot with a QR code, which is then scanned and counted. Critics say those codes make it harder for voters to fully verify their selections.
Supporters of removing QR codes say the state needs to act.
"We're at an impasse. If we ignore it again, we're just going to kick the can. Sooner or later, folks, you have to pay the piper, and it's time to remove the QR codes," Republican State Senator Max Burns said.
The proposal would have done more than just change how ballots are filled out. It also would have limited early voting, assigning voters to a single polling location instead of allowing them to vote anywhere in their county.
Neighbors in Lowndes County weighed in on those proposals.
"Why would you restrict early voting to one location? What's the point of going back to hand-written paper ballots when we have the technology to count it?" one neighbor said.
Another neighbor, Carla Leader, says she prefers the system voters already know.
"And don't say it's to make sure there's no chance for fraud or miscounting. A machine doesn't have a bias; humans do," Leader said.
For now, election officials say things remain business as usual heading into Georgia's May primary election, which will still use the current touchscreen voting system.
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