Live updates: Georgia voters rush out to cast their ballots

WABE

November 5th, 2024

Follow along here for the latest election updates from the WABE News team.

11:28 a.m. Georgia voters cast their ballots at metro Atlanta voting centers

This morning, WABE reporter Stephannie Spokes spoke with several voters who visited their local polling places before closure later today.

Georgia voter Rummel Medina is photographed at Joseph D. McGhee Tennis Center in Southwest Atlanta on Nov. 5, 2024. (Stephannie Stokes/WABE)

“It kind of feels like people have just counted Georgia out, and the last couple elections with the midterms and everything, I feel like we’ve shown that we’re willing to vote based on the actual interests of Georgians and the nation overall. So I’m feeling a little optimistic — trying to push past the doom and gloom — and hoping to see good results today.”

– Rummel Medina, Georgia voter

Georgia voter Lejon Mumford is pictured at Joseph D. McGhee Tennis Center in Southwest Atlanta on Nov. 5, 2024. (Stephannie Stokes/WABE)

“We’re exercising our right and I think this is one of the most important elections in years. We are really deciding the direction of the country and at a time where things are so unstable around the entire world. So I think who we choose as the leader is really going to decide our direction with what’s about to happen with world affairs.”

– Lejon Mumford, Georgia voter

Georgia voter Amber Hudson is seen pictured with her son Hudson at the Joseph D. McGhee Tennis Center in Southwest Atlanta on Nov. 5, 2024. (Stephannie Stokes/WABE)

“I know there’s a lot of people who are anxious. I’m not anxious. I believe and hope that a lot of people will come out and, you know, put the right candidate in office.”

– Amber Hudson, Georgia voter

Jeremy Faughtenberry is pohotgraphed at the Trinity Anglican Church voting site in Northwest Atlanta on Nov. 5, 2024. (Stephannie Stokes/WABE)

“I am glad that it’s over. I’ve been having a lot of tough decisions to make. So it was a lot of anxiety leading up to it. But today, I’m happy that I was able to get my vote in and just wait and see what happens.”

– Jeremy Faughtenberry, Georgia voter

9:14 a.m. Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger gives update on voter count

Local election officials can start counting absentee ballots at any point today, according to Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger.

Election Day Voter Count Update

This means that more than 4 million in-person early votes and absentee ballots would be counted and results made public during the 8 p.m. hour. Election day votes and late-arriving absentee ballots are counted throughout the rest of the night.

Officials have until Friday to receive and count about 10,000 outstanding military and overseas ballots.

-Rahul Bail, Politics Reporter

7:39 a.m. WABE News 2024 election photos

It’s been a long 14 weeks since Vice President Kamala Harris became the presumptive nominee, turning Georgia into a true battleground state.

WABE News photographer Matthew Pearson attended so many campaign events for Harris and former President Donald Trump that we honestly lost track. Here are some of the moments from this historic election cycle that stood out most to him.

-Rebecca Etter, Senior Digital News Editor

7:03 a.m. Georgia Supreme Court rules absentee ballots returned late in Cobb County must be set aside

The Supreme Court of Georgia has ruled that absentee ballots mailed late by Cobb County that are returned after the polls close on Election Day must be set aside and not immediately counted.

A lower court had previously extended the deadline for the roughly 3,000 Cobb County voters who received their ballots late.

That extension is being appealed, so the state high court is ordering Cobb County to keep those ballots separate.

The Republican National Committee is challenging the extension and does not want the ballots counted.

Election officials are urging voters who received their absentee ballots late to do everything possible to deliver them in person to their local election office before polls close.

It is also possible to cancel an unreturned absentee ballot and vote in person.

– Sam Gringlas, Politics Reporter

7:00 a.m. Polls are officially open in Georgia

WABE News will have journalists stationed at polling places, vote tabulation centers, official watch parties and more. Follow along with us.

If you’re voting today and need a refresher on candidates, ballot measures, or help finding your polling place, visit our Election 2024 guide.

Also, whether you’re voting today or cast your ballot early, we want to hear from you about your experience. Record a voice memo on your phone, include your full name and send it to tellus@wabe.org.

– Rebecca Etter, Senior Digital News Editor