Live updates: Polls open in Georgia, ballots returned late in Cobb must be set aside

WABE

November 5th, 2024

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

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.

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