Raffensperger Targets Inactive Georgia Voters in Election Integrity Push

Georgia's Voter Roll Maintenance Efforts

Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger has launched a four-year initiative aimed at removing hundreds of thousands of inactive voters from the state’s voter registration rolls. This move comes as part of an ongoing effort to ensure the accuracy and integrity of the state’s electoral process.

According to Raffensperger, nearly a quarter of a million people on Georgia’s voter rolls have not participated in any election since 2019. This initiative is designed to address concerns about voter eligibility and to maintain clean voter rolls. The effort also follows a period of scrutiny from former President Donald Trump and his allies during the 2020 election, who raised questions about potential issues with Georgia’s digital voting system.

Raffensperger, who is seen as a potential Republican contender for the 2026 Senate race against Senator Jon Ossoff (D-GA), announced that he plans to send mailing notices to 218,951 registered voters. These notices will give them an opportunity to update their inactive status. If they do not respond or fail to vote in the 2026 or 2028 general elections, these voters will be removed from the rolls in 2029.

In a statement, Raffensperger emphasized the importance of transparency in the voter roll maintenance process. “Every voter in Georgia is in control of his or her voter registration status,” he said. “We conduct every phase of the list maintenance process as publicly as possible, and in accordance with State and Federal law, because transparency helps shore up public trust in the accuracy and integrity of the entire election process.”

He added, “Clean voter rolls mean clean elections. My promise to Georgia voters is elections that are free, fair, and fast - and we’re doing just that.”

Addressing Election Security Concerns

The announcement coincides with growing pressure from some state Republicans to enhance election security measures, particularly regarding the use of digital voting systems. The Blue-Ribbon Study Committee on Election Procedures, a new task force supported by Georgia House Speaker Jon Burns and state Rep. Tim Fleming (R), recently met for the first time. Many lawmakers argue that paper ballots counted by hand are more secure than electronic voting, which they claim is more susceptible to fraud.

Field Searcy, cofounder of Georgians for Truth, expressed concerns about the integrity of the electoral system. “If we don’t have trust in our elections, we don’t have a country,” he said. “If our elections are not secure and trustworthy, it’s all a farce.”

Despite these concerns, Raffensperger has resisted calls to require poll workers to hand-count paper ballots. However, the secretary of state’s office recently conducted an audit of a local election, which Raffensperger claimed showed that the digital voting system contributed to essentially zero fraud.

Audit Results and Election Integrity

The audit focused on District 3’s Democratic contest for Public Service Commissioner. County election officials audited 282 batches of ballots, with 280 batches (99.3%) matching the original machine count exactly. The two batches that showed minor discrepancies were within the expected margin of human variation during hand counting and did not affect the outcome of the race.

Additionally, a 2024 state-wide elections audit found that illegal voting was rare. The report indicated that only 20 noncitizens were registered to vote, with nine of them having done so years ago and 11 never actually voting.

These efforts reflect a broader push to ensure that Georgia’s elections remain secure, transparent, and free from fraud. As the state continues to navigate these challenges, the focus remains on maintaining public confidence in the electoral process.