Georgia Republican lawmakers propose bill seeking to allow voters to inspect and count the ballots digitally

Georgia – The Georgia Secretary of State’s office may soon have to share pictures of ballots online, so anyone can see them from anywhere. This is because some lawmakers think it’s important for the state’s voting process to be more open and as clear as possible to everyone. They have a plan for a law, led by John LaHood, a Republican, that would let people look at and count the votes themselves on their computers or phones.

Lawmakers claim voters seek such option

John LaHood explained that many voters have been asking for a way to see how votes are counted and checked. This plan would make it possible for them to do just that with digital pictures of the ballots.

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This new idea focuses on the paper ballots. It says these ballots should be scanned and shown online in the clearest way possible.

Marilyn Marks, from the Coalition for Good Governance, is paying close attention to this proposal and mostly thinks it’s a good idea. She says that if everyone can see the ballot images, it might be easier to spot mistakes, like votes that weren’t counted in some areas.Top of Form

“Let’s say a precinct failed to have their ballots counted. That would become more obvious when all of the images are uploaded,” Marks explained as reported by 11 Alive.

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Such measure won’t solve all problems, as privacy concerns grow

Marks raised worries about the safety of elections, especially with the machines we use to vote.

She pointed out that even though showing pictures of ballots online could make it easier for people to see how votes are counted, this doesn’t solve the problem of how ballots are marked or the security of the voting machines.

The plan is to make sure these online ballot pictures don’t have any personal information from voters, which helps protect their privacy.

LaHood told the group reviewing the plan last month that it wouldn’t cost much to make this plan a reality. He mentioned that the Secretary of State’s office is already trying out this idea.

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Earlier this week, the proposal was moved to a committee to look into it more.