Voters over 60 years old in Cobb County are receiving two absentee ballot request forms, creating confusion about which one is correct.
Both forms are valid, and either can be used to obtain an absentee ballot for Georgia's June 9 primary.
The duplicate mailings went out because Cobb County announced March 23 that it was sending absentee ballot applications to all voters over 60 years old in an effort to make it easier for them to cast ballots without having to risk going to the polls during the coronavirus pandemic. People in that age group are believed to be at greater risk from COVID-19, the disease caused by the virus.
There are nearly 150,000 registered voters over 60 in Cobb, according to a state voter list.
The next day, Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger said his office would send absentee ballot request forms to Georgia's 6.9 million active voters.
"At the time, the secretary of state had not yet solidified their plan to mail applications to all Georgians, and we anticipated that their effort would take several weeks," the county's elections office wrote on its website.
Cobb County paid $12,382 for printing and envelope stuffing, and $50,773 for postage, Elections Director Janine Eveler said Monday.
Absentee ballots will begin to be mailed next week to voters who have filled out and returned applications.
MORE: A map of coronavirus cases in Georgia
MORE: Real-time stats and the latest news on the coronavirus outbreak
About the Author
