Skip to Main Content
Politics

After security lapses, Georgia will re-make how it runs elections

Darryl W. Smith, 51, votes at a voting station at the Southwest Branch Library in Atlanta, Georgia, on Tuesday, March 21, 2017. Residents of South Fulton voted today for mayor and city council positions. (DAVID BARNES / DAVID.BARNES@AJC.COM)
Darryl W. Smith, 51, votes at a voting station at the Southwest Branch Library in Atlanta, Georgia, on Tuesday, March 21, 2017. Residents of South Fulton voted today for mayor and city council positions. (DAVID BARNES / DAVID.BARNES@AJC.COM)
KT
By Kristina Torres

Georgia's elections for the first time in more than a decade will be entirely overseen by the Secretary of State's Office, a decision that will end the role of the state's longtime elections center at Kennesaw State University.

The move comes as the center has weathered a storm of criticism over security lapses that exposed more than 6.5 million voter records and other sensitive information.

State officials told The Atlanta Journal-Constitution on Friday that the transition is expected to take up to a year, with the university's Center for Election Systems in the meantime continuing to help maintain the state's voting infrastructure and work with local officials in preparation for upcoming elections.