Georgia Senate votes for rapid move to hand-marked paper ballots before elections this fall

Cumming Republican state Sen. Greg Dolezal speaks from the well of the chamber late on Crossover Day at the Georgia State Capitol on March 6, 2026. (Matthew Pearson/WABE)

A proposal for a quick switch to hand-marked paper ballots cleared the Georgia Senate on Friday, an idea that election officials say would disrupt this year’s elections.

The Senate’s 32-21 party-line vote sets up a showdown over competing bills that would change Georgia’s voting system. The Senate bill would take effect this summer, while a House proposal would delay the transition until the 2028 election year.

The measure that advanced Friday would require voters to fill out ballots by bubbling in ovals instead of making their choices on touchscreens. Millions of ballots would need to be preprinted and stored until voters fill them out.