GA Secretary of State works with Chatham County Board of Elections
Posted
By
Connect Savannah Staff
on Wed, Nov 18, 2015 at 4:51 PM
The Chatham County Board of Elections and Secretary of State Brian Kemp say they are working together to increase monitoring and ensure compliance during the upcoming December 1st runoff elections for the City of Savannah.
"The Board of Elections is taking additional steps and is committed to continuing to make certain that elections are honestly, efficiently and uniformly conducted in compliance with state and federal law," a spokesperson says.
The efforts come with photographed evidence of campaign workers handing out so-called "Sample Ballots," marked with only names of incumbents, within the legal 150-foot restriction area around polling places.
"While carefully observing campaigners’ fundamental free speech rights, the Board of Elections will insist upon compliance with the 150-foot restriction. If anyone refuses to comply, the Board of Elections will call law enforcement. Campaigning within 150 feet of a polling place is a misdemeanor punishable under Georgia law," the spokesperson says.
The Board of Elections has highlighted this concern to poll managers. "We are asking the candidates to make sure to highlight this concern to their campaign workers as well. Additional efforts are being made to assist poll managers in identifying and enforcing these boundaries and information will be readily available to the campaigns and others advising of the boundaries that will be enforced," the spokesperson says.