The special session Governor Brian Kemp called last week to redraw the state's congressional districts will also address changes to the state's election system, which currently relies on QR code ballots.
A state law passed in 2024 prohibits the use of QR codes on official ballots after July 1. Politicians and Georgians have been putting pressure on Gov. Kemp for months to resolve the inconsistency between the law and the state's voting system as the deadline to become compliant with the new law quickly approaches.
Legislators have met twice in regular sessions over the past two years since the law was passed, with no clear solution. The June 17 special session will be the state's last chance to make changes before Georgia's voting system becomes illegal.
The two most likely outcomes of the special session are a delay in the July 1 deadline, giving lawmakers more time to address the issue without midterm elections looming, or the state could switch to hand-marked paper ballots, which the Republican party has long championed.
Over 60% of U.S. states use a paper-ballot system, but the short turnaround time to implement the new system could still be a major issue.
The former would allow voters to vote in the midterm elections with a voting system they are familiar with, and would give lawmakers the chance to find a different system during the regular legislative session.
The latter wouldn't necessarily solve all the issues that led to the 2024 law in the first place. Republicans, who pushed for the law, took issue with the QR code ballots as well as the Dominion-brand machines that count the ballots.
So, some Republicans are arguing that all the machines need to be replaced to ensure safe and fair elections, which would cost about $70 million, according to estimates by the General Assembly.
That cost could either be taken on by the state or by the counties, which run the elections.
