Georgia election 2026: Metro Atlanta county addresses absentee ballot delays as election approaches

Days before the midterm elections finish up, with final voting on Tuesday, the Cobb County Board of Elections and Registration is addressing issues with certain absentee-by-mail ballot requests.

According to the board, “a limited number of voters who requested an absentee-by-mail ballot may have experienced a delay” in receiving it.

The county said the delay “appears to have been caused by the county’s absentee ballot vendor, Fort Orange Press, and is primarily affecting voters whose ballots were issued by the county between the dates of Oct. 7, 2026 and Oct. 15, 2026.”

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The deadline to request an absentee ballot was Oct. 23 in Georgia, but for impacted voters in Cobb County, voters whose ballots were issued between Oct. 7 and Oct. 15 still have an opportunity to request a new one, which will be mailed to them by priority express mail with a prepaid priority express return envelope.

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Here’s how the Elections Board says you can check if you’re eligible:

1. Eligible affected voters are those whose ballots are reported as “issued” between October 7 and October 15 according the most recent available data from the Secretary of State’s voter information system.
2. Affected voters must contact Cobb Elections Department themselves to report their ballots as undelivered. This may be done by calling 770-528-2581 or sending an email to [email protected].
3. The voter will need to provide sufficient information for staff to confirm that their ballot was included among the affected ballots and must sign the standard affidavit required for any voter to cancel their original ballot. Only a voter can cancel the original ballot request, not a relative. The affidavit is available here.
4. If the voter is verified to have been affected by the delay, the Board will immediately overnight such voter (1) an absentee ballot by USPS Priority Express Mail and (2) include with it a prepaid USPS Priority Express return envelope.
5. There is no extension for the receipt of ballots. All ballots must be received in the Cobb County Elections Office by 7 pm on election day, November 3, 2026, in order to be counted.

The Cobb County Board of Elections will not overnight absentee ballots for voters who already have their originally issued absentee ballot as of Wednesday, regardless of if it has been turned in, if they have voted by other means or if they already canceled their original absentee ballot.

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