GA Code § 21-2-229 (2021)
2021 Georgia Code|Title 21 - Elections|Chapter 2 - Elections and Primaries Generally|Article 6 - Registration of Voters|§ 21-2-229. Challenge of Applicant for Registration by Other Electors; Notice and Hearing; Right of Appeal; Sanctions for Board's Noncompliance

  Any elector of a county or municipality may challenge the qualifications of any person applying to register to vote in the county or municipality and may challenge the qualifications of any elector of the county or municipality whose name appears on the list of electors. Such challenges shall be in writing and shall specify distinctly the grounds of the challenge. There shall not be a limit on the number of persons whose qualifications such elector may challenge.   Upon such challenge being filed with the board of registrars, the registrars shall set a hearing on such challenge within ten business days after serving notice of the challenge. Notice of the date, time, and place of the hearing shall be served upon the person whose qualifications are being challenged along with a copy of such challenge and upon the elector making the challenge within ten business days following the filing of the challenge. The person being challenged shall receive at least three days' notice of the date, time, and place of the hearing. Such notice shall be served either by first-class mail addressed to the mailing address shown on the person's voter registration records or in the manner provided in subsection (c) of Code Section 21-2-228.   The burden shall be on the elector making the challenge to prove that the person being challenged is not qualified to remain on the list of electors. The board of registrars shall have the authority to issue subpoenas for the attendance of witnesses and the production of books, papers, and other material upon application by the person whose qualifications are being challenged or the elector making the challenge. The party requesting such subpoenas shall be responsible to serve such subpoenas and, if necessary, to enforce the subpoenas by application to the superior court. Any witness so subpoenaed, and after attending, shall be allowed and paid the same mileage and fee as allowed and paid witnesses in civil actions in the superior court.   After the hearing provided for in this Code section, the registrars shall determine said challenge and shall notify the parties of their decision. If the registrars uphold the challenge, the person's application for registration shall be rejected or the person's name removed from the list of electors, as appropriate. The elector shall be notified of such decision in writing either by first-class mail addressed to the mailing address shown on the person's voter registration records or in the manner provided in subsection (c) of Code Section 21-2-228 for other notices.   Either party shall have a right of appeal from the decision of the registrars to the superior court by filing a petition with the clerk of the superior court within ten days after the date of the decision of the registrars. A copy of such petition shall be served upon the other parties and the registrars. Unless and until the decision of the registrars is reversed by the court, the decision of the registrars shall stand.   Failure to comply with the provisions of this Code section by the board of registrars shall subject such board to sanctions by the State Election Board.     (Code 1981, §21-2-229, enacted by Ga. L. 1994, p. 1443, § 3; Ga. L. 1997, p. 590, § 25; Ga. L. 1998, p. 295, § 1; Ga. L. 2021, p. 14, § 15/SB 202.)    The 2021 amendment,  effective March 25, 2021, added the last sentence in subsection (a); in subsection (b), inserted "within ten business days after serving notice of the challenge" at the end of the first sentence and inserted "within ten business days following the filing of the challenge" at the end of second sentence; and added subsection (f).   Editor's notes.   - Ga. L. 2021, p. 14, § 1/SB 202, not codified by the General Assembly, provides: "This Act shall be known and may be cited as the 'Election Integrity Act of 2021."'   Ga. L. 2021, p. 14, § 2/SB 202, not codified by the General Assembly, provides: "The General Assembly finds and declares that:   "(1) Following the 2018 and 2020 elections, there was a significant lack of confidence in Georgia election systems, with many electors concerned about allegations of rampant voter suppression and many electors concerned about allegations of rampant voter fraud;   "(2) Many Georgia election processes were challenged in court, including the subjective signature-matching requirements, by Georgians on all sides of the political spectrum before and after the 2020 general election;   "(3) The stress of the 2020 elections, with a dramatic increase in absentee-by-mail ballots and pandemic restrictions, demonstrated where there were opportunities to update existing processes to reduce the burden on election officials and boost voter confidence;   "(4) The changes made in this legislation in 2021 are designed to address the lack of elector confidence in the election system on all sides of the political spectrum, to reduce the burden on election officials, and to streamline the process of conducting elections in Georgia by promoting uniformity in voting. Several examples will help explain how these goals are achieved;   "(5) The broad discretion allowed to local officials for advance voting dates and hours led to significant variations across the state in total number of hours of advance voting, depending on the county. More than 100 counties have never offered voting on Sunday and many counties offered only a single day of weekend voting. Requiring two Saturday voting days and two optional Sunday voting days will dramatically increase the total voting hours for voters across the State of Georgia, and all electors in Georgia will have access to multiple opportunities to vote in person on the weekend for the first time;   "(6) Some counties in 2020 received significant infusions of grant funding for election operations, while other counties received no such funds. Promoting uniformity in the distribution of funds to election operations will boost voter confidence and ensure that there is no political advantage conferred by preferring certain counties over others in the distribution of funds;   "(7) Elections in Georgia are administered by counties, but that can lead to problems for voters in counties with dysfunctional election systems. Counties with long-term problems of lines, problems with processing of absentee ballots, and other challenges in administration need accountability, but state officials are limited in what they are able to do to address those problems. Ensuring there is a mechanism to address local election problems will promote voter confidence and meet the goal of uniformity;   "(8) Elections are a public process and public participation is encouraged by all involved, but the enthusiasm of some outside groups in sending multiple absentee ballot applications in 2020, often with incorrectly filled-in voter information, led to significant confusion by electors. Clarifying the rules regarding absentee ballot applications will build elector confidence while not sacrificing the opportunities for electors to participate in the process;   "(9) The lengthy absentee ballot process also led to elector confusion, including electors who were told they had already voted when they arrived to vote in person. Creating a definite period of absentee voting will assist electors in understanding the election process while also ensuring that opportunities to vote are not diminished, especially when many absentee ballots issued in the last few days before the election were not successfully voted or were returned late;   "(10) Opportunities for delivering absentee ballots to a drop box were first created by the State Election Board as a pandemic response. The drop boxes created by rule no longer existed in Georgia law when the emergency rules that created them expired. The General Assembly considered a variety of options and constructed a system that allows the use of drop boxes, while also ensuring the security of the system and providing options in emergency situations;   "(11) The lengthy nine-week runoffs in 2020 were exhausting for candidates, donors, and electors. By adding ranked choice voting for military and overseas voters, the run-off period can be shortened to a more manageable period for all involved, easing the burden on election officials and on electors;   "(12) Counting absentee ballots in 2020 took an incredibly long time in some counties. Creating processes for early processing and scanning of absentee ballots will promote elector confidence by ensuring that results are reported quickly;   "(13) The sanctity of the precinct was also brought into sharp focus in 2020, with many groups approaching electors while they waited in line. Protecting electors from improper interference, political pressure, or intimidation while waiting in line to vote is of paramount importance to protecting the election system and ensuring elector confidence;   "(14) Ballot duplication for provisional ballots and other purposes places a heavy burden on election officials. The number of duplicated ballots has continued to rise dramatically from 2016 through 2020. Reducing the number of duplicated ballots will significantly reduce the burden on election officials and creating bipartisan panels to conduct duplication will promote elector confidence;   "(15) Electors voting out of precinct add to the burden on election officials and lines for other electors because of the length of time it takes to process a provisional ballot in a precinct. Electors should be directed to the correct precinct on election day to ensure that they are able to vote in all elections for which they are eligible;   "(16) In considering the changes in 2021, the General Assembly heard hours of testimony from electors, election officials, and attorneys involved in voting. The General Assembly made significant modifications through the legislative process as it weighed the various interests involved, including adding further weekend voting, changing parameters for out-of-precinct voting, and adding transparency for ballot images; and   "(17) While each of the changes in this legislation in 2021 stands alone and is severable under Code Section 1-1-3, the changes in total reflect the General Assembly's considered judgment on the changes required to Georgia's election system to make it 'easy to vote and hard to cheat,' applying the lessons learned from conducting an election in the 2020 pandemic."   JUDICIAL DECISIONS   Appellate jurisdiction.    - Without a clear connection to a specific election, a challenge to a voter's qualifications brought under O.C.G.A. § 21-2-228 or O.C.G.A. § 21-2-229 does not come within the jurisdiction of the Supreme Court of Georgia over "cases of election contest," Ga. Const. 1983, Art. VI, Sec. VI, Para. II (2). To the extent that Jarrard v. Clayton County Bd. of Registrars, 425 S.E.2d 874 (1992), was decided as an election contest, it was overruled. Cook v. Board of Registrars, 291 Ga. 67, 727 S.E.2d 478 (2012).