2020 Georgia Code
Title 21 - Elections
Chapter 2 - Elections and Primaries Generally
Article 8 - Voting by Ballot
§ 21-2-285. Form of Official Election Ballot; Attestation on Receipt of Benefit in Exchange for Vote; When an Election Is Not Required

1. At the top of each ballot for an election shall be printed in prominent type the words "OFFICIAL BALLOT," followed by the designation of the precinct for which it is prepared and the name and date of the election.
2. 1. Directions that explain how to cast a vote and how to obtain a new ballot after one is spoiled shall appear immediately under this caption on a ballot presenting the names of candidates for election to office as specified by the rules and regulations of the State Election Board.
   2. Marks made in violation of these directions shall be disregarded in the counting of the votes cast. The names of persons inserted on the ballot by the elector shall be written only within the write-in space provided and the insertion of such names outside such column or by the use of a sticker, paster, stamp, or other printed or written matter is prohibited.
3. Immediately under the directions, the names of all candidates who have been nominated in accordance with the requirements of this chapter shall be printed on the ballot and the names of the candidates shall in all cases be arranged under the titles of the respective offices they are seeking. In a primary or special election, said names shall be arranged alphabetically by last name under the title of the office. The incumbency of a candidate seeking election for the public office he or she then holds shall be indicated on the ballot. In a general election, the names of candidates who are nominees of a political party shall be placed under the name of their party. The columns of political parties shall be printed on the ballot, beginning on the left side thereof, and shall be arranged from left to right in the descending order of the totals of votes cast for candidates of the political parties for Governor at the last gubernatorial election. The columns of parties having no candidate for Governor on the ballot at the last gubernatorial election shall be arranged alphabetically according to the party name to the right of the columns of the parties so represented. The columns of political bodies shall be arranged alphabetically according to the body name to the right of the party columns. The names of all independent candidates shall be printed on the ballot in a column or columns under the heading "Independent," which shall be placed to the right of the political body columns. In the case of two or more independent candidates seeking the same office, their names shall be arranged under the title of the office in alphabetical order. The names of candidates seeking the same office shall be printed horizontally opposite one another in their respective columns, and such columns shall be of sufficient length to permit such an arrangement. To the right of the independent column or columns shall be printed a blank column sufficient for the insertion of write-in votes.
4. Unless a candidate has filed with his or her nominating petition a certificate from a political party or body attesting that such candidate is the nominee of such party by virtue of having been nominated in a duly constituted party convention, the candidate's name shall appear on the ballot under the independent column.
5. When presidential electors are to be elected, the ballot shall not list the individual names of the candidates for presidential electors but shall list the names of each political party or body and the names of the candidates of the party or body for the offices of President and Vice President of the United States. The individual names or the nominees of each political party or body for such offices shall be posted at each polling place arranged alphabetically under the names of the candidates of the party or body for President and Vice President of the United States. A vote for the candidates for President and Vice President of a political party or body shall be deemed to be a vote for each of the candidates for presidential electors of such political party or body.
6. When proposed constitutional amendments or other questions are submitted to a vote of the electors, each amendment or other question so submitted may be printed upon the ballot following the groups of candidates for the various offices. Proposed constitutional amendments so submitted shall be printed in the order determined by the Constitutional Amendments Publication Board and in brief form as directed by the General Assembly and, in the event of a failure to so direct, the form shall be determined by the Secretary of State and shall include the short title or heading provided for in subsection (c) of Code Section 50-12-101. Unless otherwise provided by law, any other state-wide questions or questions to be presented to the electors of more than one county so submitted shall be printed in brief form as directed by the General Assembly and, in the event of a failure to so direct, the form shall be determined by the Secretary of State and shall include a short title or heading in bold face at the beginning of each such question on the ballot and any local questions so submitted shall be printed in brief form as directed by the General Assembly and, in the event of a failure to so direct, the form shall be determined by the superintendent.
7. When proposed questions are submitted to a vote of municipal electors, each question so submitted may be printed upon the ballot to the right of or below the groups of candidates for the various offices.
8. Each ballot shall have printed thereon the following:

   "I understand that the offer or acceptance of money or any other object of value to vote for any particular candidate, list of candidates, issue, or list of issues included in this election constitutes an act of voter fraud and is a felony under Georgia law."

9. The ballots shall vary in form only as the names of precincts, offices, candidates, or this chapter may require.
10. Any other provision of law to the contrary notwithstanding, in the event there is no opposed candidate in a precinct in a general or special municipal election, no election shall be held in such precinct unless a write-in candidate has qualified as provided by law or unless there are issues to be submitted to the electorate within a precinct.
11. When, pursuant to subsection (j) of this Code section, no election is to be conducted, the municipality shall provide notice reasonably calculated to inform the affected electorate that no election is to be conducted. Each such unopposed candidate shall be deemed to have voted for himself or herself. The superintendent shall certify such unopposed candidate as elected in the same manner as he or she certifies other candidates as elected pursuant to Code Section 21-2-502.

(Ga. L. 1922, p. 97, §§ 2, 3; Code 1933, §§ 34-1903, 34-1904; Ga. L. 1941, p. 324, § 1; Ga. L. 1948, Ex. Sess., p. 3, § 1; Ga. L. 1958, p. 208, § 6; Ga. L. 1962, p. 98, § 1; Ga. L. 1962, p. 618, § 1; Code 1933, § 34-1103, enacted by Ga. L. 1964, Ex. Sess., p. 26, § 1; Ga. L. 1965, p. 226, § 1; Ga. L. 1968, p. 851, § 1; Ga. L. 1969, p. 329, § 12; Ga. L. 1982, p. 1512, § 5; Ga. L. 1983, p. 140, § 1; Ga. L. 1986, p. 772, § 3; Ga. L. 1986, p. 1538, § 1; Ga. L. 1993, p. 118, § 1; Ga. L. 1994, p. 279, § 2; Ga. L. 1997, p. 590, § 28; Ga. L. 1998, p. 295, § 1; Ga. L. 1998, p. 1231, §§ 10, 34; Ga. L. 2001, p. 269, § 17; Ga. L. 2002, p. 598, § 2-7; Ga. L. 2005, p. 253, § 36/HB 244; Ga. L. 2012, p. 995, § 22/SB 92.)

- For note on the 2001 amendment of this Code section, see 18 Ga. St. U. L. Rev. 96 (2001).

JUDICIAL DECISIONS

Authority of states to regulate elections.

- States have broad authority, absent valid congressional legislation, to establish rules regulating the manner of conducting both primary and final elections. Williamson v. Fortson, 376 F. Supp. 1300 (N.D. Ga. 1974).

There are many types of information which could serve to reduce voter confusion if they were included in the ballot. The determination of what should be included is a state function. Williamson v. Fortson, 376 F. Supp. 1300 (N.D. Ga. 1974).

- The prohibition of the use of stamps or stickers is not unconstitutional on its face. Morris v. Fortson, 261 F. Supp. 538 (N.D. Ga. 1966).

- See Buttrill v. Thomas, 126 Ga. App. 498, 191 S.E.2d 119 (1972).

- A trial court properly denied a losing candidate's petition to contest the election results of a mayoral election held in a town as the losing candidate failed to meet the burden of establishing that any misconduct, fraud, or irregularity occurred that placed the result of the election in doubt based on the county clerk signing the document reflecting the election results, instead of the election superintendent, and the clerk's failure to purge the voters list, which was not an obligation of the election supervisor anyway. The omission of the statutory language providing directions on how to cast a vote likewise did not necessitate a new election since the poll manager testified that the poll manager and other poll workers instructed each voter how to fill out the ballot and established that there was no concern or confusion by the voters regarding the ballot. Lewis v. O'Day, 284 Ga. 423, 667 S.E.2d 594 (2008).

- Trial court properly dismissed a nominee's lawsuit seeking to have the nominee's name placed upon the ballot for the 2016 general election as an independent candidate for President of the United States because the notices of candidacy were submitted 11 days after the deadline set forth in O.C.G.A. § 21-2-132(d)(1) and the nominee failed to have enough signatures verified; thus, the nominee was not entitled to have the nominee's name placed on the ballot. De La Fuente v. Kemp, 300 Ga. 79, 793 S.E.2d 89 (2016).

Cited in McCrary v. Poythress, 638 F.2d 1308 (5th Cir. 1981).

OPINIONS OF THE ATTORNEY GENERAL

Editor's notes.

- In light of the similarity of the statutory provisions, opinions under former Code 1933, §§ 34A-1004 and 34-1323 are included in the annotations for this Code section.

- A special municipal election, otherwise required by law, must be conducted notwithstanding the existence of the conditions set forth in this section. 1980 Op. Att'y Gen. No. U80-15 (decided under former Code 1933, § 34A-1004).

- Where neither a party nominee nor a write-in candidate files notice of intention of candidacy in opposition to an already qualified candidate in a municipal general or special election, then no name for that race shall appear on the ballot. 1982 Op. Att'y Gen. No. U82-10 (decided under former Code 1933, § 34A-1004).

- It was reasonable that former Code 1933, §§ 34-1102 and 34-1103 (see now O.C.G.A. §§ 21-2-284 and21-2-285) prescribing form for paper ballots, control questions of form of ballot cards when former Code 1933, § 34-1223 (formerly § 21-2-357), governing ballot cards, did not expressly provide an answer to the question raised. 1981 Op. Att'y Gen. No. 81-68.

- When no candidate of either party nor an independent qualifies for an office to be filled at a general election, the title to the office should be printed on the ballot and then a note should be written under the title in each party's column that there is no candidate for that office. 1968 Op. Att'y Gen. No. 68-411.

- Ga. L. 1933, § 34-1323 (see now O.C.G.A. § 21-2-438) does not remove the restrictions on the use of stickers, pasters, stamps, etc., as contained in former Code 1933, § 34-1103 (see now O.C.G.A. § 21-2-285). 1976 Op. Att'y Gen. No. U76-45 (decided under former Code 1933, § 34-1323).

- Ballot cards used in conjunction with vote recorders may not be prepunched to designate election districts (now precincts) or political parties in lieu of printing such information on cards, but may be so prepunched in addition to printing such information on cards. 1981 Op. Att'y Gen. No. 81-68.

When precinct and political party are designated by printing, such designations may be prepunched to obviate confusion and concern among voters; however, it would be wise to also include explanatory language to the effect that the "ballot has been prepunched only so as to indicate information printed immediately above." 1981 Op. Att'y Gen. No. 81-68.

- An elector, when casting a write-in vote, may use abbreviations in the title of the office if the write-in office has been abbreviated in such a way that the elector has indicated clearly and without question the office for which the elector voted. 1968 Op. Att'y Gen. No. 68-434.

Poll officers are required to count as valid any ballot on which an elector has indicated clearly and without question the candidate for whom the elector desires to cast a vote, notwithstanding the fact the elector has not marked the elector's ballot in accordance with the Election Code. 1976 Op. Att'y Gen. No. U76-45.

- In those instances where the elector's intent can clearly and unquestionably be ascertained, the elector's vote should be counted even where the elector has not spelled the candidate's name exactly as recorded by the candidate. 1968 Op. Att'y Gen. No. 68-411.

- Titles such as "Dr.", "Rev.", "Judge", "Mr.", "Ms.", "Mrs.", or "Miss" are not a part of a person's name and should not be placed on the ballot as a part of the candidate's name. 1984 Op. Att'y Gen. No. 84-51.

When elected commissioner of labor withdrew prior to taking oath of office and another person was appointed to serve until the next general election in 1992, the proper ballot caption for the office for the 1992 primary and general elections was: "For Commissioner of Labor (To Succeed Al Scott for the Unexpired Term of Joe Tanner, withdrawn)". 1991 Op. Att'y Gen. No. 91-16.

- Former Code 1933, §§ 34-1102 and 34-1103 (see now O.C.G.A. §§ 21-2-284 and21-2-285) allow both special election candidates and general election candidates to be listed on the same ballot so long as the candidates have qualified in accordance with the requirements of the Election Code and the elections are held on the same day; provided, however, that all persons in that election district (now precinct) who will receive the ballot are eligible to vote in both the general and the special election. 1970 Op. Att'y Gen. No. 70-115.

- Public funds may not be expended for the purpose of conducting a straw poll or public opinion referendum absent statutory authority. 1990 Op. Att'y Gen. No. U90.

RESEARCH REFERENCES

Am. Jur. 2d.

- 26 Am. Jur. 2d, Elections, § 285 et seq.

- 29 C.J.S., Elections, §§ 264, 267, 271, 272, 273.