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Elections FAQ's

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1. What are my voting options?

• By mail, beginning 78 days prior to the election date.  You must complete and submit an Official Absentee Ballot Application no later than 11 days prior to the election date. Ballots will be mailed beginning 29 days prior to the election date.
• In person Early Voting beginning 21 days prior to most elections at the Nowell Recreation Center located at 201 W Spring Street in Monroe and at Meridian Park located at 101 Generation Blvd in Loganville.  The hours for Early Voting are Monday-Friday 8 am - 5 p.m. and two Saturdays 9 a.m. - 5 p.m.
• At your assigned polling place on Election Day from 7am-7pm

2. What are the acceptable types of photo ID for voting?

Each elector shall present proper identification to a poll worker. Proper identification shall consist of any one of the following:

• A Georgia driver's license which was properly issued by the appropriate state agency
• A valid Georgia voter identification card issued under Code Section 21-2-417.1 or other valid identification card issued by a branch, department, agency, or entity of the State of Georgia, any other state, or the United States authorized by law to issue personal identification, provided that such identification card contains a photograph of the elector
• A valid United States passport
• A valid employee identification card containing a photograph of the elector and issued by any branch, department, agency, or entity of the United States government, this state, or any county, municipality, board, authority, or other entity of this state
• A valid United States military identification card, provided that such identification card contains a photograph of the elector
• A valid tribal identification card containing a photograph of the elector

3. Do I need my precinct card to vote?

No. The precinct card is just to inform you of your voting location and districts.  You must show a photo ID to vote.

4. If I believe I have received the wrong ballot or I have a question about what is on my ballot, what do I do?

STOP! And notify a poll worker BEFORE pressing “Cast Ballot”.  Once you have pressed “Cast Ballot”, your vote has been recorded and is FINAL.

5. May I receive assistance at the polls?

A voter may receive assistance at the polls if they are unable to read the English language or if he or she has a physical disability that renders them unable to see or mark the ballot, operate the voting equipment, or enter the voting booth. In order to do so, everyone, except those that are blind, must take an oath showing the reason they need assistance. The person providing the assistance to the voter must sign on the oath. When there is a federal candidate on the ballot, the voter can select anyone they want to assist them in voting, except for the voter's employer, an agent of that employer, or an officer or agent of the voter's union. When there is no federal candidate on the ballot, the voter can select any other resident of the precinct or a parent, sibling, spouse or child to assist them inside the voting booth. No person may assist more than ten voters in a primary, election, or runoff.

**Note: Between the hours of 9:30 a.m. and 4:30 p.m. on the day of an election, voters who are 75 years of age or older or who are physically disabled may, upon request to a poll officer, vote immediately without waiting in line.

6. Can I take my child to the polls with me?

The child of a voter 17 years of age and under is permitted to accompany his/her parent into the voting booth while voting; any child 12 and under may accompany a voter who is not his/her parent into the voting booth while voting. Children ARE NOT allowed to handle voter access cards or to operate voting machines.

7. Can I wear a campaign button into the polling place?

No person may campaign; distribute literature of written or printed matter of any kind; wear campaign buttons, signs, pins, stickers, T-shirts, etc.; circulate petitions; or perform similar activities within 150 feet of the building in which a polling place is located.

8. If I don’t vote on a candidate or question, will my other votes still be counted?

Yes. You are not required to cast a vote in every race or on every question. If you choose to leave a race or a question blank, the rest of the votes on your ballot will still be counted.

9. Can I vote anywhere in Georgia even if I don’t live here? I can vote a provisional ballot, right?

No. Under Georgia law, you must be registered to vote in the county where you are attempting to vote. While you may be permitted to vote a provisional ballot in any polling place that you go to, your ballot will not count unless you are a resident in that county and found to have properly registered to vote.

If you are properly registered to vote, but choose to vote at the wrong county polling place for your residence address, your ballot would only be partially counted. District and local races would probably not count.

10. What is the difference between a special election, a primary election, and a general election?

A 'special election' means an election that arises from some emergency or special need outside the usual routine. This could include a vacancy in a public office or the holding of a county referendum.

A 'primary' means any election held for the purpose of electing party officers or nominating candidates for public offices to be voted upon at a general election. In Georgia, political parties are defined as any political organization that at the preceding Gubernatorial election nominated a candidate for Governor and whose candidate for Governor at such election pulled at least 20 percent of the total votes cast in the state for Governor or in a Presidential election nominated a candidate for President of the United States and whose candidates for presidential electors at such election pulled at least 20 percent of the total votes cast in the nation for that office. At the present time, recognized political parties in Georgia include the Democratic and Republican parties.

A 'general election' is held at intervals fixed by law. In Georgia, the general election is held the Tuesday after the first Monday of November in each even-numbered year. Most terms of office are for four years. Exceptions to this include six-year terms for United States Senators and two-year terms for Georgia General Assembly members and United States Representatives. The general election will include the candidates nominated at the political party primaries, political body candidates nominated by petition or state convention, independent candidates through the petition process, and write-in candidates.

11. Why do I have to choose a party?

The State of Georgia does not register voters by party and does not permit voting in more than one party’s primary, so voters wishing to participate in the primary election must choose either a Democratic or Republican ballot.

12. What if I want to vote, but don’t want to choose a party?

Voters may opt for a Nonpartisan ballot. The Nonpartisan ballot will only contain the nonpartisan races, which are mostly judicial and are mostly unopposed.

13. Does my party choice in the Primary Election have any bearing on my choices in the November General Election?

No. You are not restricted by party in any way during the November General Election.

14. If I voted in a particular party’s primary, may I switch to the other party for the runoff?

No. When you choose a party during a primary, you may only participate in that party’s runoff. You may not switch parties for the runoff.

15. If I don’t vote in the primary, may I vote in the runoff?

Yes. If you don’t vote in the primary, you have not yet selected a party preference and may vote in either party’s runoff.

16. If I vote in the Nonpartisan Election during the initial voting, may I participate in a party runoff?

Yes. If you vote Nonpartisan during the initial election, then you have not yet chosen a party. This means that you are eligible to participate in either party’s primary runoff.

17. If I don’t vote in the Primary or Runoff, can I still vote in the November General Election?

Yes. In November all the candidates appear on the same ballot and you can vote for whoever you choose.

18. Where do I vote?

You can find your polling place and get other information here: www.mvp.sos.ga.gov

19. When can I vote on Election Day?

Election Day Polling Places are open from 7am-7pm