Georgia judge rejects bid to block weekend absentee ballot returns
A Georgia judge on Saturday, Nov. 2, 2024, rejected a Republican effort to stop counties from accepting hand-delivered absentee ballots over the weekend. The ruling left in place a practice that state election officials say is allowed through Election Day.
Georgia’s absentee-voting guidance says registered voters may hand-deliver their completed ballot to their county registrar, and the ballot must arrive by the time polls close on Election Day to be counted. State guidance also says voters can return absentee ballots in person to county election offices.
The dispute centered on weekend ballot-return hours, including Nov. 2 and Nov. 3, when Fulton County and other counties had planned to receive absentee ballots in person. The court denied emergency relief, so those plans remained in place.
The order did not change Georgia’s absentee-ballot rules. It simply declined to shut down a legally available return option on a compressed election timetable. Voters who were eligible to hand-deliver absentee ballots kept that option, and county election offices stayed open for the scheduled weekend returns.
The decision came in the final stretch before Election Day, with absentee voting already underway across the state.
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