A bill to bring new voting machines to Georgia is headed to Gov. Brian Kemp’s desk.
The State House gave final passage to the measure Thursday calling for new touch-screen voting machines with a paper ballot that would then be scanned to record the vote. The bill passed along party lines 101-69 with Democrats voting against it.
“We are going to purchase the best system possible to make sure their votes are counted accurately, and I believe that bill did that today,” says bill sponsor Rep. Barry Fleming (R-Harlem).
He disputes claims by Democrats that hand-marked paper ballots would be more secure and cost less.
“There is a huge problem always when you have pencil and pen-marked ballots of voter intent. You do not see that with a ballot-marking device,” Fleming tells WSB’s Sandra Parrish.
He expects Kemp to sign the bill quickly so Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger can begin the bidding process for the new machines.
The new machines will be in use for the 2020 presidential elections, but Fleming expects cities and counties to begin using them later this year.