Georgia Cobb County Undelivered Mail-In Ballots Challenge (Democratic National Committee)

Lawsuit filed by the Democratic National Committee (DNC) and Democratic Party of Georgia (DPG) against Cobb County, Georgia challenging the county board of election’s failure to send mail-in ballots to more than 3,000 voters. Under Georgia state law, county boards of elections must send mail-in ballots within three days to any voter who submits a request before the statewide deadline. The absentee ballot request deadline for the 2024 general election fell on Oct. 25 and every voter who submitted a timely request for a mail-in ballot should have received a ballot by Oct. 28. On Oct. 31, the Cobb County Board of Elections publicly announced that it had not timely delivered over 3,000 ballots and planned to send them via express shipping or overnight delivery the following day. 

The plaintiffs argue that the board’s plan is insufficient because even if all these ballots reach voters before Election Day, there is not enough time to ensure they can be returned in time to be counted. They ask the court to order the county board of elections to extend the ballot-receipt deadline for all the affected voters from Nov. 5 to Nov. 8, which is the same deadline for overseas voters to return their ballots under the Uniformed and Overseas Citizen Absentee Voting Act  (UOCAVA). They also ask the court to order the county to allow any of the affected voters residing overseas to vote through Federal Absentee Write-In Ballots. Finally, they ask the court to order the county to segregate any of these voters’ ballots received after 7 p.m. on Election Day, in case they become subject to post-election legal challenges.

STATUS: The plaintiffs filed their petition on Nov. 1, 2024. Cobb County has not responded yet.

Last updated: November 1, 2024 2:44 pm EST