Georgia
GOPers ignore election officials’ warnings, leaving Georgia little time for paper ballots switch
Georgia election officials have less than three months to convert the state’s entire voting system from touchscreen machines to paper ballots, after the state Senate failed to vote Friday on legislation that would have delayed the conversion until 2028.
The rushed system switch risks compromising election security and will complicate ballot counting, delay reporting results and create “widespread confusion” for voters and election administrators, county officials say.
Georgia’s current touchscreen system generates QR codes for ballot counting. But in 2024 GOP state lawmakers voted to sunset these machines by July 1 of this year, making it illegal to use them beyond that. Last week, the state Senate passed a bill to change over to a completely hand-marked ballot system.
However, local election officials urged lawmakers to delay that switch until 2028 so that they would have time to put the new system in place, which would include pre-printing millions of ballots and re-training election workers.
The state House passed a bipartisan bill this morning that would’ve allowed for that two-year grace period. But the Senate – led by Lt. Gov. Burt Jones (R), who is running for the GOP nomination for governor – declined to bring it forward for a vote Friday, the final day of this year’s legislative session.
That means election officials now have until July 1 to develop a system where voters use a pen to fill in oval bubbles to select their candidates.
“This proposal would create widespread confusion for Georgia voters and election officials,” said Joseph Kirk, a county election supervisor and president of the Georgia Association of Voter Registration and Election Officials (GAVREO), last month. “Simply put, transitioning to a new election system and implementing major changes to the voting process this close to the 2026 general election is unworkable.”
Among the problems with doing a ballot system conversion in a crunch – and so close to midterms and Georgia’s gubernatorial election – is that the bill offers no funding for implementing the switch or for technology that could help expedite it. It also creates a security risk, according to GAVREO, given that election officials have little time to train staff and develop protective measures for guarding the millions of pre-printed ballots required by the law before Election Day.
Election officials also warn that the law’s new reporting requirements will cause delays in ballot counting and in delivering timely results. Those problems often trigger chaos, controversy and conspiracy theories, as seen in the fallout over Fulton County’s 2020 election ballot count, which is still being probed today.
Leaders of both parties are now scrambling to see if they can make other modifications or resuscitate the delayed deadline through a special emergency session.
Georgia softball’s season has come to an end in the second game of the NCAA Super Regionals on the road to the Women’s College World Series. The 10-seeded team fell to Tennessee in a best-of-three series, 2-0, Friday, May 22 in Knoxville.
“As I said last night, the thing that’s hard about this time is that you don’t get another week with this group,” head coach Tony Baldwin said. “And this group is everything I could ask for as a coach. What they did to represent our university, our program and our fanbase, that’s what makes it hurt. But it’s a ballgame, and they keep score and we just didn’t do enough to come out on top. Tennessee deserves all the credit for that.”
Baldwin got emotional at the mention of what Team 30 has done for the Classic City in this long haul of a season.
This was the final game in the red and black for seniors Jaydyn Goodwin, Sarah Gordon, Tyler Ellison, Destin Howard and Marisa Miller, who have spent most, if not all, of their collegiate careers wearing the G.
It’s also the final game for players like Natalie Ray and Keirstin Roose, who though they transferred in last summer, have become impact players and people for the Dawgs.
“As I said to the team at the end, I wish I had time to punch into Chat GPT, ‘What’s the right thing to say?’ I don’t know that I have all of that right now,” Baldwin said with Goodwin and Gordon seated beside him at the press table.
“Shorty (Jaydyn Goodwin) has been part of my life since she was 12 years old. My family loves her, the kids love her, she’s like part of my family, and to watch her grow into the strong, confident woman that she is today, who I have coached. I had coaches who did that for me, long time ago, so for 30 years I’ve just been trying to have an impact on people. To be a part of watching her go from little Shorty at 12 years old, to the person who’s a boss on the softball field, and she’s interviewing for jobs, and she’s leaving here a strong, confident woman — she’s been a pain in my ass for a long time, but I’m going to miss that part of it.
“For Gordy (Sarah Gordon), who didn’t start in our program, to watch her growth and belief in herself, to lean on her faith through the hard times and grow into the woman she is today, again, that’s what it’s all about.”
The Bulldogs finish 41-20 overall, narrowly above .500 but off one heck of a run to end the season. They clinched a regular-season series win over a higher-ranked Florida, dominated LSU and Oklahoma in the SEC Tournament and swept the Athens Regional for the first time since 2023.
“I’m remembering that not everyone gets to do this, and although I’ve done it every year, I’m remembering to be grateful to be in this position,” Goodwin said when asked about how proud she is of her time at Georgia. “I committed to being a Bulldog when I was like, 13. It’s going to be weird moving forward, but I’m a Bulldog for life. Forever.
“I’m so thankful the Lord led me to Georgia,” Gordon continued, turning to thank Baldwin personally. “I feel like this is where I was supposed to be. I immediately stepped on campus for my visit, and when I got back in the car with my mom, I told her that.”
While Georgia hasn’t made it past the Super Regionals since 2021 under Lu Harris-Champer, they aren’t allowing themselves to be defined by the outcomes. Baldwin has emphasized that after every win and loss for the last month.
“I know that we get judged by our outcomes, and you play the game for the outcome,” Baldwin said after Thursday’s loss, “but at the end of the day, the thing that I preach all the time is that this is a vehicle for our players to grow … and don’t let outcomes affect how you feel about yourselves.
“I told them before the game that I love them regardless of what happens, and I told them after the game that I love them, not for their outcome, but for their behavior, how they go about doing what they do and how they represent this university.”
The NCAA Tournament Knoxville Super Regional will continue Friday at Sherri Parker Lee Stadium, hosted by No. 7 national seed Tennessee (46-10). The Lady Vols will face No. 10 national seed Georgia (41-19) in Game 2 of the best-of-three series. First pitch is scheduled for 3 p.m. EDT.
Tennessee won Game 1 on Thursday, 3-1. An if necessary Game 3 is scheduled for Saturday at 11 a.m. EDT.
Tennessee leads the all-time softball series versus Georgia, 49-41, dating to March 15, 1997. The first game in the series contested in Knoxville was on March 13, 1998.
Below is how to watch information for Tennessee versus Georgia and a softball game schedule for the best-of-three Knoxville Super Regional.
What channel is Tennessee versus Georgia softball on today?
Watch Tennessee live
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2026 NCAA Tournament Knoxville Super Regional softball schedule, TV game times
Thursday, May 21
Gates open at 6 p.m. EDT
7 p.m. EDT – Game 1 (ESPN2)
Friday, May 22
Gates open at 2 p.m. EDT
3 p.m. EDT – Game 2 (ESPN2)
Saturday, May 23 (if necessary)
Gates open at 10 a.m. EDT
11 a.m. EDT – Game 3 (ESPN)
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Town honors veterans with street banners
The town of Senoia is honoring local veterans with commemorative Main Street banners and breaking ground on a new memorial ahead of its weekend summer kickoff celebration.
The city of Senoia is embracing a heavy dose of patriotism by honoring veterans with Main Street banners ahead of a free summer kickoff celebration Saturday.
Honoring Senoia veterans
What we know:
Families purchase light pole banners featuring the names and faces of living and deceased military members. The leftover money from these purchases is funding a new veterans memorial that the city is breaking ground on this week. The city will give the banners back to the families on Veterans Day in November.
Faces on Main Street
What they’re saying:
Stephanie Reeder of the Senoia Downtown Development Authority highlighted specific banners, including Sean and Carlee Bishop. “They met when they were both young and they both have banners up,” Reeder said. “They were both Air Force.”
Reeder also noted that one of the town’s oldest living veterans, who will be 97 next month, is featured on a banner. Senoia Mayor Scott Tigchelaar described the town’s atmosphere as feeling like a Norman Rockwell painting.
“I think it feels a little more like our greatest generation’s generation,” Tigchelaar said. “We’re very patriotic here, and we like to celebrate our veterans.”
Weekend event schedule
Timeline:
The city is hosting a summer kickoff event Saturday featuring live music, food and fireworks at Marimac Lakes Park. Gates for the free, kid-friendly event open at 5 p.m., with food available at 7:30 p.m. and fireworks starting at 9:30 p.m.
The Saturday event is not a Memorial Day service. The official Memorial Day service will take place Monday. More information can be found at www.enjoysenoia.com//events/summer-kick-off.
The Source: The information in this story was gathered from Stephanie Reeder of the Senoia Downtown Development Authority, who highlighted specific military banners displayed on Main Street, as well as Senoia Mayor Scott Tigchelaar.
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