Cobb elections director departing after less than 2 years
Cobb County Elections Director Tate Fall is departing from the role she stepped in to less than two years ago.
Fall, who is on leave, notified the county Board of Elections and Registration that she will not return to the position after her leave expires toward the end of the year, county officials said in a news release.
“Fall expressed her intention to ensure a smooth transition of her duties before her leave concludes,” the release says.
It adds that the elections board has named Michael D’Itri as acting elections director until a permanent successor is appointed. He could not be reached for comment Friday.
County officials said D’Itri has served Cobb County for more than a decade, most recently as manager of the Elections Prep Center Division, streamlining election operations and logistics. Previously, he was a judicial administrative manager with the Clerk of Cobb County Superior Court.
The circumstances surrounding Fall’s leave and planned departure were unclear Friday. She could not be reached for comment. Members of the election board did not immediately respond to emails seeking comment.
Cobb County spokesperson Ross Cavitt said he did not know why Fall decided to not return to her position. He said he was unaware of any problems that could have contributed to her departure, though he noted one snafu earlier this year involving households receiving incorrect precinct cards.
According to a May 20 news release, some residents in nine of the county’s 148 precincts received voter precinct cards “addressed to voters who do not reside at their address.” The news release attributed the mistakes to human error during the transfer of address data.
“That seemed to be a contentious issue for a little while and then it kind of went away,” Cavitt said Friday.
In February 2024, Cobb County Elections and Registration discovered 75 absentee ballots were sent out in error in the presidential preference primary. Staff determined that of the 194 ballots mailed out Feb. 23 of that year, all were Republican ballots but 75 should have been Democratic ballots, according to a county news release.
“We are happy this situation was found quickly,” Fall said in the release. “Our staff was able to pinpoint the issue, identify those who received the wrong ballot, and determine how to correct it.”
Fall started as elections director in December 2023 after being deputy director of the elections department in Arlington County, Virginia.
In an interview in early 2024, Fall told The Atlanta Journal-Constitution she planned to retire as Cobb County’s election director.
About the Author
Reed Williams is an enterprise reporter on the Local team at The Atlanta Journal-Constitution.
