Oconee Voting On Jan. 5 Shows Role Of Absentee Ballots

In voting for the Jan. 5 runoff, fewer than one in four of the 23,565 Oconee County voters who cast a ballot did so on election day, according to the official election results certified by the Oconee County Board of Elections and Registration early Tuesday evening.

Nearly six in 10 of the voters participated in early in-person voting, and nearly two in 10 voted by absentee ballot.

Republican U.S. Sen. David Perdue got 68.9 percent of the overall vote in the county on Jan. 5, and eventual statewide winner Democrat John Ossoff received 31.1 percent.

Perdue got 79.7 percent of the vote on election day and 71.6 percent of those voting advanced in-person, however, he received only 46.4 percent of the absentee ballot vote.

That pattern also held in the second U.S. Senate race on Jan. 5 and in the race for Public Service Commissioner.

And the pattern held on Nov. 3, when President Donald Trump, who ended up with 65.9 percent of the vote in the county, got only 46.7 percent among those who cast an absentee ballot.

These discrepancies–which were statewide--are at the heart of debate in the General Assembly now meeting in Atlanta on proposed changes in state elections laws, with focus on absentee balloting and, to a lesser extent, on advanced in-person voting.

Sen. Bill Cowsert, who represents Oconee County in the General Assembly, said he has not been involved in shaping any legislation but is aware of concerns about absentee ballots and the new voting machines and “will thoroughly review any bills addressing these concerns.”

Houston Gaines and Marcus Wiedower, who represent Oconee County in the Georgia House of Representatives, have been unwilling to respond to a question about changes they think need to be made in the state's laws regarding elections.

For more on this story, with a video of the Elections Board meeting, please go to Oconee County Observations.