Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger announced the formation of a bipartisan Election Integrity Task Force on Aug. 12, bringing together local leaders, election officials, and policy experts.
According to a press release from Raffensperger’s office, the task force will serve as an ongoing forum for leaders, election officials and policy experts from across the political spectrum to help ensure Georgia’s elections remain “fair and secure.”
The Election Integrity Task Force will examine issues including voter list maintenance, election administration best practices, transparency initiatives, election misinformation, and county compliance and performance.
“Georgia has the most secure elections in America and we intend to keep it that way,” Raffensperger said in a statement. “This bipartisan group brings together leaders with different backgrounds and perspectives who share a commitment to protecting every lawful vote and strengthening public confidence in our elections.”
Members of the task force:
- Former U.S. Representative Drew Ferguson, Democracy Defense Foundation
- Former Governor Roy Barnes, Democracy Defense Foundation
- Former Atlanta Mayor Shirley Franklin, Democracy Defense Foundation
- Former U.S. Senator Saxby Chambliss, Democracy Defense Foundation
- Election law expert Ben Ginsberg
- Former State Senator Don Balfour, Senior Advisor to the Georgia Democracy Resilience Network
- Joseph Kirk, Bartow County Elections Supervisor and Immediate Past President of the Georgia Association of Voter Registration and Election Officials
- Nancy Boren, Muscogee County Elections and Registration Director
- Terry Norris, Executive Director of the Georgia Sheriffs’ Association
Raffensperger’s task force announcement comes as a Georgia General Assembly-created panel explores options to return the state to hand-marked ballots for the 2028 election cycle.
Last month, Raffensperger announced that results from an audit of the June 16 Georgia runoff showed errors came exclusively from hand-marked ballots.
The results came from a ballot image audit that Raffensperger said “demonstrated the inherent risk in relying on hand-marked ballots for secure elections.”
President Donald Trump continues to falsely claim that his 2020 election loss in Georgia was due to voter fraud and has also called for a return to hand-marked ballots.
