Early voting for the upcoming general primary election will begin Monday, May 2, and it will be the first county election voting to occur since passage of Georgia’s Election Integrity Act last year.
All in-person early voting will be done at the Gilmer County Registrar’s Office, 1 Broad Street. Weekday hours are Monday-Friday,8:30 a.m.-5 p.m. The last day for early voting is Friday, May 20.
Per the new voter law, in-person early voting will also be offered on two Saturdays across the state — May 7 and 14 — from 9 a.m.-5 p.m. Previously, only one Saturday was required during early voting.
Sunday early voting is optional, but Gilmer County does not have that scheduled, confirmed Chief Registrar Tammy Watkins.
Several county positions will be on the primary ballot including Post Two Commissioner, and Board of Education districts 4 and 5. In state races, the primary election will narrow the field for governor, lieutenant governor, secretary of state, attorney general and U.S. Senate. Copies of the election ballots appear in this week’s Times-Courier.
Barring a runoff, winning candidates will go onto the Nov. 8 general election. If a runoff election is required, it will be held June 21.
Friday, May 13, is the last day that voters can apply to receive an absentee ballot by mail.
Absentee ballots can be requested online at Georgia’s My Voter Page (mvp.sos.ga.gov) or by visiting or calling the local registrar’s office. Applications can also be mailed, e-mailed or faxed to the registrar’s office.
Another change made by the 2021 voter law is that absentee ballot dropboxes now have to be kept inside the voter registrar’s office. They will only be accessible during set early voting hours.
Completed absentee ballots will be accepted through May 24 at 7 p.m., Watkins noted.
Key absentee ballot details and election dates/deadlines can be found online at gilmercounty-ga.gov/voter-registration.