Brian Brodrick, Chuck Garrett, and Connie Massie each picked up one vote on Tuesday when the Oconee County Board of Elections and Registration certified the results of the Nov. 7 elections in Watkinsville.
The change in the vote totals from the Unofficial and Incomplete Results released on election evening and the Official and Complete Results certified by the Board on Tuesday was the result of acceptance of one provisional ballot.
The provisional ballot didn’t change the election outcome, as incumbent Brodrick ran unopposed for Mayor, incumbent Garrett defeated Rebecca Billings 290 votes to 142 in the Council Post 1 race, and incumbent Massey defeated Carolyn Maultsby 310 votes to 121 in the Post 2 race in the final and official count.
Sharon Gregg, Director of the Oconee County Board of Elections and Registration, in explaining the acceptance of the provisional ballot, reviewed for the Board a long list of reasons why a person could cast a provisional ballot.
Included were lack of a inclusion in the electronic listing of registered voters for a late registrant, lack of one of the six forms of identification required to vote, and a lack of a copy of the identification submitted with registration online.
“We had one provisional ballot on election day, and it was accepted,” Gregg reported.
At the relatively brief meeting, Gregg also provided an update on early voting procedures to be used in the March 12 Presidential Preference Primary and the May 21 General Primary/Nonpartisan Election.
Vote Details
Gregg reported that only four persons requested an absentee ballot for the elections for the Watkinsville election, and all four of those persons returned the ballot.
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| Gregg, Board With Board Members Ken Davis, Doug Hammond |
On election day, 207 persons cast a ballot, including the provisional vote, and 224 persons participated in advanced voting.
The 435 voters represented 19.7 percent of the 2,214 active voters within the city borders of Watkinsville.
Vice Chair Kirk Shook, the Republican Party designee to the Board, asked Gregg why the person voted provisionally in the Watkinsville election.
“We’re not allowed to disclose,” she responded.
Next Year’s Elections
Gregg told the Board that the room at the new Administrative Building used for the first time for advanced in person voting for the Watkinsville election allowed for “a successful three weeks” of early voting.
“Going forward, we are preparing for the March PPP and how that will be set up,” she said, referring to the March 12 Presidential Preference Primary. “We are still running through it, and practicing it,” she added.
Six machines were in the room for early voting, Gregg said.
The plan is to have 16 machines in the room for the March election, she said, “and then maybe 24 for May,” she added.
The plans for the room allow for “possibly 28,” she said.
Early voting in the Watkinsville election was very light, with 28 persons participating on the final day of early voting on Nov. 3, the largest number on any of the 17 days. Only two persons voted on Oct. 21, the first of two Saturdays for early voting.
Gregg said use of the Civic Center “is not an option for us” any more because of scheduling conflicts during the long early voting period.
The Board of Elections and Registration did use the Civic Center for early voting in 2020, 2021, and 2022.
Video
Gregg began her report on the Watkinsville election at 1:04 in the video.
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