COBB COUNTY, Ga. — More than 1,000 absentee ballots were never sent in the mail, according to Cobb County election officials.
The county launched an investigation after reports that some voters who requested the mail-in ballots never received them, which is how officials made the discovery, they said. The investigation determined 1,046 requested absentee ballots were never mailed.
Elections and Registrations Director Janine Eveler said the mistake was due to human error, according to a news release. New staff did not follow procedures on two days to ensure ballots were mailed.
"I am sorry that this office let these voters down," Eveler said in a prepared statement to the Board of Elections and Registrations. "Many of the absentee staff have been averaging more than 80 or more hours per week, and they are exhausted. Still, that is no excuse for such a critical error."
According to election data from the Secretary of State's Office, as of Nov. 4, 30,854 absentee ballots were requested in Cobb County - more than any other county in Georgia. It's unclear if the 1,046 ballots have been factored into the data.
To help rectify the issue, election officials overnighted absentee ballots to 83 out-of-state addresses and included pre-paid overnight return envelopes. They had already mailed ballots in similar fashion to 194 residents who had requested ballots, meaning at least 277 ballots have been mailed out to voters.
Records show another 271 residents canceled their absentee ballot request and voted during the early voting period, according to the office.
The remaining 498 residents identified are urged to vote in person on Election Day, the county said.
"I am very disappointed that we have placed these voters in a position where they may not have an opportunity to cast their ballots in this general election," Board of Elections Chair Tori Silas said in a news release. "While human error was cleary a factor, I believe reduced time frames for the receipt of requests for and processing of absentee ballot provided under SB202, as well as the turnover in the Elections office, are also significant factors."
Georgia's newest election law, SB202, now requires voters to request absentee ballots 78 days before an election instead of the previous 180 days. Previously, counties could send ballots to voters 49 days prior to the election. The new law cuts that to 29 days.
"With only 3 days until election day, we are constrained in what we can do. That being the case, we are taking every possible step, notwithstanding those constraints, to ensure these voters have an opportunity to cast their ballots," Silas said in a statement.