Cobb to start recounting ballots Friday

The by-hand recount of all ballots cast in the presidential race will begin Friday in Cobb County.

County elections officials will start the arduous task at 9 a.m. at the Jim Miller Park Event Center in Marietta. The statewide hand recount was ordered Wednesday by Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger, and all counties must complete the recount by midnight Wednesday.

At stake are Georgia’s 16 votes in the Electoral College, which is scheduled to meet to cast votes for president Dec. 14. Joe Biden held a 14,000-vote lead over Donald Trump as of Thursday evening.

County spokesman Ross Cavitt said staff will work around the clock in shifts and hope to finish by state-imposed deadline of midnight Wednesday. He also said Cobb has no idea how much the recount will cost or exactly how many people they will need. Raffensperger’s office will provide additional resources, if needed, Cavitt said.

“We already have a good group assembled,” Cavitt said.

Cavitt said the recount does not prevent the Board of Elections and Registration from certifying the results of the Nov. 3 election.

The board is scheduled to meet at noon Friday to certify the results. The meeting will likely be streamed on the county’s YouTube channel, Cavitt said.

This labor-intensive process begins eight days before the Nov. 20 deadline for Georgia’s results to be certified by Raffensperger, who is now in quarantine after his wife tested positive for COVID-19.

AJC reporter Mark Niesse contributed to this report.