More than one in 10 votes cast in early voting for this month’s municipal elections were cast on Georgia’s new, secure paper-ballot system which has performed well, according to Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger who noted that deliveries are on schedule for statewide rollout in the March 24 Presidential Preference Primary.

The paper-ballot system is being piloted in Bartow, Carroll, Catoosa, Cobb, Decatur, Lowndes and Paulding for their municipal or countywide elections.

They used the new system in early voting polling places and will use it countywide on Tuesday. The first statewide use will be during the March 24 Presidential Preference Primary.

As of Thursday night, 11,525 ballots were cast in the pilot counties out of 112,965 votes cast statewide.

“The new system features the convenience of touchscreen selection that people told us they have enjoyed on Georgia’s first-generation electronic voting machines, and they now have the security of a verifiable paper ballot,” Raffensperger said.

Raffensperger’s office has already taken delivery, tested and accepted more than 10,000 of the new touchscreens and half of the new scanners ordered.

The pilot counties have received a full complement of new equipment, not just what they’ll need for municipal elections.  Delivery to the remaining counties is being scheduled now in coordination with local considerations. All 159 counties have already gotten equipment for voting stations to use in training and demonstrations to the public.

At the same time, a contractor for the state is working with the counties to collect their old equipment and haul it off to make room for the new.

Training on the setup and use of the new system has been completed for 117 counties. The remaining counties will be trained by Thanksgiving.

Inspectors for the state are checking every polling place for physical security, physical layout, infrastructure, and Americans with Disabilities Act compliance, to ensure all of the state’s voters will have a positive voting experience.  

“The implementation of the new voting system is going like clockwork. The system is running as designed,” Raffensperger said. “We are learning some things from our experience during the pilot. The biggest lesson we’ve learned is how much people like the security and ease of using the new system.”