More Carroll County Polling Precincts Considered For Consolidation

The Fairfield Plantation polling precinct may not be the only precinct under consideration to be consolidated with another, according to open records documents obtained by a third-party this week. The Carroll County Board of Elections authorized Carroll County Elections Superintendent Becky Deese to review all thirty Carroll County precincts. Deese identified an additional eight locations for consideration of consolidation including Bonner, Bowdon Junction, County Administration, east Carroll, New Hope, Tabernacle, west Carrollton and the University of West Georgia precinct.

Board of Elections officials state that several counties are planning to consolidate precincts in an effort to combine equipment and for budgetary reasons. They also note that since the use of ‘Direct Record Electronic voting equipment’; ‘Express Polls’ used for voter look up; and ballot encoding, the voting process is now “streamlined” and more efficient.

The popularity of early voting is another reason cited for consideration of consolidating polls. Over 25% of Carroll County voters reportedly participated before the traditional election-day, during the 2008 election period.