The deadline for some residents of Cobb County, Georgia, to return their mail-in ballots was extended by a judge on Monday after election officials failed to send out ballots to 1,036 people who requested them.
Some of the affected voters filed a lawsuit over the weekend asking for an extension after election officials admitted that the mistake was due to an error on their part.
“This is an important result for these Cobb County voters, who through no fault of their own did not receive the absentee ballots to which they were legally entitled,” Jonathan Topaz, an attorney at the American Civil Liberties Union’s Voting Rights Project, said in a statement.
About 250 of the 1,036 voters who requested a ballot but never received it had already voted in person during early voting. The lawsuit said that many of the others may not be able to vote without the extension.
A sign showing the way for voters stands outside a Cobb County voting building during the first day of early voting, Monday, Oct. 17, 2022, in Marietta, Ga. (AP Photo/Mike Stewart)
Ballots were being sent out through UPS overnight delivery on Monday. Voters affected by the error will still have their ballots counted as long as they are postmarked by 7:00 p.m. on election day and arrive by Nov. 14.
Madison Cook, a Cobb County resident who goes to school at Mississippi State University, was one of the voters affected by the election officials’ mistake.
“I have done everything I can to stay in contact with Cobb County to figure out where my ballot is, but I was barely able to get through to them, until they told me it was too late to mail another ballot,” Cook said in a statement through ACLU Georgia before the deadline was extended.
Republican candidate for U.S. Senate Herschel Walker is facing off against U.S. Sen. Raphael Warnock, D-Ga. (AP Photo/John Bazemore)
Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp, left, and Democratic challenger, Stacey Abrams. (Associated Press)
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Georgia, a battleground state, is home to two of the most hotly contested battles in Tuesday’s midterm elections.
Democratic gubernatorial candidate Stacey Abrams is facing off against incumbent Republican Brian Kemp, while Democrat Raphael Warnock is trying to defend his U.S. Senate seat against Republican challenger Herschel Walker.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
