The Macon County Board of Elections held an emergency called meeting on Monday to tally and report the provisional ballots cast during the Franklin and Highlands municipal elections.
The board had planned to follow its usual procedure and report the provisional ballots at canvass, Nov. 14. Elections director Melanie Thibault said her office, as well as other election offices across the state, received a notice from the state after hours on Friday that the number of provisional ballots should have been reported by noon two days after the election.
Previously the provisional ballots were researched during the 10-day period between election day and canvass. Senate Bill 382 that passed last year will change that to three business days.
Thibault said it can sometimes take up to 30 minutes to research one ballot to verify if the voter qualifies. She said with the new rule giving them fewer days, that could create long hours for the elections staff during the primaries and general elections when there will be many more provisional ballots than were received during this year’s municipal elections.
There was a total of 11 provisional ballots – seven cast during early voting and four on Election Day. Four of the ballots were added to the unofficial totals after confirming the voters did live within the city limits (three in Franklin and one in Highlands). Of the remaining seven, two were registered in the Ellijay precinct, one was outside the Highlands city limits, and four were in the Franklin ETJ (Extra Territorial Jurisdiction).
Municipal elections are open only to registered voters living within the corporate limits, according to state law. Although there are people throughout the county with a Franklin mailing address, only those who live in the city limits can vote in the municipal election, which is held in odd numbered years.
Thibault said she includes the rules in the legal notices that are published about the elections, and it was mentioned several times in newspaper articles, but people still arrived at the polls expecting to vote.
She estimated they turned away 100 people during the two weeks of early voting and 50 on Election Day. If there is a question about a voter’s eligibility, he/she can complete an provisional ballot.
Confusion also arises concerning the ETJ. Properties within the ETJ fall within the town’s planning and zoning jurisdiction, but those property owners or residents cannot vote because they do not reside within the city limits. ETJ property owners do not pay city taxes. Some properties within the ETJ may be served by city services such as water, but it is not required.
Some property owners in the ETJ say the town has control over their property but they in turn do not have any say when it comes to voting. Two of the seven members of the Franklin Planning Board are from the ETJ, with one alternate from the ETJ and one alternate from the town limits.
Anyone with questions about where they vote can contact the Macon County Board of Elections at 828-349-2034 or look up their voter registration on the state website ncsbe.gov.