Local leaders and voters react to over 1,000 Cobb County absentee ballots never mailed

COBB COUNTY, Ga. — Millions of Georgians have already voted, and many more will vote on Tuesday.

However, more than 1,000 Cobb County voters never got that chance because the absentee ballots they ordered were never sent out.

Saturday, Channel 2′s Larry Spruill spoke with community leaders who expressed their concerns on the issue.

“It’s highly upsetting,” said Cobb County NAACP President Jeriene Grimes about the unsent ballots.

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Channel 2 Action News learned that Cobb County’s election office found out that over 1,000 voters who requested an absentee ballot never got them, as they were never mailed.

“This is a critical race. This is one of the most important elections in our country and in our state,” Grimes said.

The Cobb County Board of Elections admitted to the mistake on Saturday and said it was human error. “That’s not enough. There’s still a hierarchy of power and leadership that goes with that,” said Grimes.

Elections leaders said new staff members didn’t follow procedures to ensure ballots were mailed. “It disenfranchises folks: elderly, people overseas,” said Grimes.

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Alyse Martin, 20, is registered in Cobb County but attends school at Howard University in Washington D.C.

Martin told Channel 2 Action News she requested her absentee ballot in September but never got it. She’s now concerned her voice won’t be heard or even counted for that matter. “I still don’t have it, and it’s Friday. And Election Day is on Tuesday,” she said.

Cobb County election leaders said they know roughly 1,048 absentee ballots were never mailed. Election staff overnighted absentee ballots to 83 out-of-state addresses.

They mailed ballots to 194 Cobb County voters. Records also show 271 residents canceled their ballot request and voted during early voting.

The remaining 498 voters are urged to show up in person on Election Day. “It just leaves questions (as) to what will happen on Tuesday. What will be the end result?” asked Grimes. “If there is no level of accountability, there is a possibility that some people votes didn’t make it.”

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