OPENPUBLICA · PUBLIC MEETING RECORD
Record of Proceedings

DeKalb County Board of Registration and Elections Meeting - February 12, 2026

Board of Commissioners & Committees — Thursday, February 12, 2026
BodyDekalb County, Georgia
SessionBoard of Commissioners & Committees
DateThursday, February 12, 2026
StatusFILED
Video Record
0:00 / 1:17:16

Transcript — Verbatim
0:09

Good afternoon and welcome to the February 12th regularly scheduled meeting of the DeCab County Board of Registration and Elections.

0:17

Can I get the roll call, please?

0:23

Good afternoon, board members.

0:24

When I call your name, please respond by saying here.

0:26

Vasu Abirahman.

0:28

Travis Bowden.

0:30

Here.

0:30

Gail Lee.

0:31

Here.

0:31

De Le Loman.

0:33

Here.

0:34

Carly Swift.

0:35

Here.

0:36

Madam Chair, we have a quorum.

0:37

Thank you.

0:39

Can I get a motion to approve the agenda?

0:42

So moved.

0:43

Okay.

0:44

Second.

0:44

All in favor?

0:46

Aye.

0:47

Aye.

0:48

Great.

0:50

Um, and can we get a motion to approve the January 8th, 2026 uh regularly scheduled meeting minutes?

0:58

So moved.

0:59

Second.

1:00

Okay.

1:00

All in favor.

1:02

Aye.

1:02

Aye.

1:03

Aye.

1:04

Aye.

1:04

Okay.

1:05

Thank you.

1:05

Now we will have public comment.

1:11

Public comments may be made in person or by submitting an email of one printed page or less in a minimum of 12 fonts, elections public CCMT at DeCab County GA.gov, which must be received between 35 and 5 minutes before the scheduled start of the meeting.

1:27

The body of your email must include your first and last name.

1:30

By submitting an email for public comment, you agree to have your name and email broadcast on Ustream and entered into the record or minutes.

1:37

The DeCab Board of Registration and Elections reserves the right at the board's sole discretion to add your email to the record or minutes without reading any evidence of the broadcast, or to read all or a portion of your email and to the record or minutes.

1:50

All public comments will be limited to two minutes.

1:52

Abrasive, profane, derogatory language, holding up signs, clapping, yelling, standing, laying the aisles to show support or opposition to a speaker will not be prohibited, but a show of hands or quietly standing in place will be permitted to show support or opposition to a speaker's position.

2:10

Thank you.

2:12

Is the the timer gonna count going to count down?

2:16

Okay.

2:17

Look at us.

2:19

Moving into the 21st entry.

2:21

Okay, so uh I'll just call uh I'm gonna call you guys in groups.

2:26

So the first three um Michael Beach, Janet Grant, Betsy Shockleford.

2:35

Well I'm waiting for this countdown.

2:38

This is spiffy.

2:39

Um two comments.

2:41

One is I've already this Michael Beach from a poll manager here in Decatur.

2:46

Um hearing from employees.

2:49

We need a policy and guidance about if ICE shows up at our polls.

2:54

I'm already being asked about it.

2:56

And so we really do need something to be able to say in how we're supposed to respond.

3:01

The others have been at the state houses.

3:03

I know some of you have this week.

3:04

Uh payload paper ballots are coming.

3:07

I hope there's a plan because it sure seems like people are resisting the fact that this is so late in February that we're still going to have this happen.

Discussion Breakdown — Share of Meeting
Election Administration█████████████████████████████████████████████70%
Public Engagement█████████████20%
Legislative Updates███5%
Public Safety█2%
Procedural█1%
Pension Planning█1%
Budget Equity Analysis█1%
Summary of Proceedings

DeKalb County Board of Registration and Elections Meeting - February 12, 2026

The DeKalb County Board of Registration and Elections held its regularly scheduled meeting on February 12, 2026, at 9:30 AM. The board approved the agenda and minutes from January 8, 2026, received public comments, reviewed the director's report on registration, budget, and legislative updates, and approved several operational items including temporary polling place changes and early voting sites for the May primary. All motions were passed unanimously.

Consent Calendar

  • The agenda for the February 12 meeting was approved unanimously.
  • The minutes of the January 8, 2026, regularly scheduled meeting were approved unanimously.

Public Comments & Testimony

  • Michael Beach (Poll Manager, Decatur): Requested a policy and guidance on how to respond if ICE appears at polling places. Also expressed concern about the preparation for hand-marked paper ballots due to the QR code removal deadline (House Bill 189), noting training is starting soon.
  • Janet Grant (Area Poll Manager, DeKalb County resident): Thanked the board for improvements in election operations since 2020, including a new online poll worker training system. Urged the board to pass a resolution asking the legislature to delay the QR code removal deadline to 2027, citing similar actions by Cobb and Fulton counties.
  • Cheryl Dudley (DeKalb resident, voter activist): Thanked the board for its work but implored them to develop plans to protect voters and poll managers from ICE intimidation. Also urged strengthening certification laws and preventing third parties from removing voters from rolls.
  • Dr. Kendra Bogowski (Chair, DeKalb County Republican Party): Cited a letter from Voter GA regarding vulnerabilities in the Dominion Democracy Suite 5.5A voting system, including poor encryption, shared certificates, and alleged modified files. Expressed concern about unverifiable QR codes and urged attention to these issues.
  • Online Comment from Seventy Samsung (DeKalb County resident): Appreciated friendly poll workers and early voting sites. Requested expansion of early voting days/hours and coordination with officials to protect voting rights.
  • Online Comment from Carla Boudot (DeKalb County resident): Appreciated early voting locations and urged timely communication about polling place changes. Expressed concern about legislative bills attempting to comply with SB 189 without adequate testing.

Discussion Items

  • Director's Report – Registration Updates: As of February 10, 2026, there were 564,506 registered voters (488,508 active, 75,998 inactive). As of February 12, totals were 565,014 (489,102 active, 75,912 inactive). Applications pending: 4,157 (mostly from DDS). Returned mail processing cancelled 3,140 registrations. The department facilitated a pension board election on February 9 and is gearing up for the House District 94 special election on March 10, 2026 (early voting February 16–March 6). Qualifying for local candidates for the general primary runs March 2–6.
  • Budget Presentation for FY 2026: The requested budget is $14,987,034; the finance department recommended $14,842,034 (a reduction of $145,000 in capital outlays). The director noted that 2024 was a presidential election year with higher costs, while 2025 had two elections. She expressed comfort with the $14 million request but welcomed board input. Discussion ensued about capital outlay reductions, retirement services increases (due to hiring more FTEs), and budget contingencies for potential QR code legislation (estimated cost $5–7 million). The board agreed to advocate for adding back the $145,000.
  • Legislative Update: The general counsel reviewed pending election-related bills, including HB 215 (voter list integrity), HB 502 (preferential treatment for voters with children), HB 604 (manual ballot recounts), HB 633 (expanding absentee ballot requesters), HB 1108 (hand-marked and hand-counted paper ballots), HR 251 (nonpartisan probate judge elections), SB 214 (voting with ID at any polling place), SB 274 (same-day registration), and SB 42 (moving municipal elections to even-numbered years). No action taken yet.
  • Temporary Polling Place Changes for Summer 2026: Eight schools will be unavailable due to construction. Staff proposed temporary relocations: Cross Keys High to Woodward Elementary (distance reduction 0.04 mi, 6,685 voters), Ashford Park Elementary to John Lewis Elementary (additional 0.14 mi, 6,685 voters), Champion Theme Middle to St. Michael's (distance increase 0.59 mi, 5,559 voters), Winbrook Elementary to Stevenson High (0.67 mi, 7,028 voters), Idlewood Elementary to Stone Mountain Middle (0.32 mi, 4,838 voters), Cantler Murphy Elementary to Arabia Mountain High (0.13 mi, 3,635 voters), Sagamore Hills Elementary to Outlet Community Church (0.58 mi, 5,826 voters), and Kingsley Elementary to Kingswood United Methodist Church (0.56 mi, 5,976 voters). The board approved the changes unanimously.
  • Early Voting Sites for May 19, 2026, General Primary: Staff recommended 20 early voting locations, operating April 27–May 15, 2026, weekdays 7 a.m.–7 p.m., two Saturdays 9 a.m.–6 p.m., and Sundays noon–5 p.m. Discussion included a cluster of sites in Atlanta (Bessie Branham and Neighborhood Church) and the lack of options in some areas due to industrial zoning. The board approved the plan unanimously.
  • Georgia Soil and Water Conservation Commission Agreement: The board authorized the director to enter into a memorandum of agreement with the commission, in a form approved by the county attorney. Unanimously approved.

Key Outcomes

  • Agenda and minutes approved unanimously.
  • Temporary polling place changes for the May primary and June runoff approved unanimously.
  • Early voting locations and times for the May 19 general primary approved unanimously.
  • Authorization for Soil and Water Conservation MOA approved unanimously.
  • Board comments: Members thanked staff, discussed concerns about ICE at polls, criticized the QR code deadline policy, and emphasized the importance of accurate election narratives. No executive session was held. The meeting adjourned.

Meeting Transcript

Good afternoon and welcome to the February 12th regularly scheduled meeting of the DeCab County Board of Registration and Elections. Can I get the roll call, please? Good afternoon, board members. When I call your name, please respond by saying here. Vasu Abirahman. Travis Bowden. Here. Gail Lee. Here. De Le Loman. Here. Carly Swift. Here. Madam Chair, we have a quorum. Thank you. Can I get a motion to approve the agenda? So moved. Okay. Second. All in favor? Aye. Aye. Great. Um, and can we get a motion to approve the January 8th, 2026 uh regularly scheduled meeting minutes? So moved. Second. Okay. All in favor. Aye. Aye. Aye. Aye. Okay. Thank you. Now we will have public comment. Public comments may be made in person or by submitting an email of one printed page or less in a minimum of 12 fonts, elections public CCMT at DeCab County GA.gov, which must be received between 35 and 5 minutes before the scheduled start of the meeting. The body of your email must include your first and last name. By submitting an email for public comment, you agree to have your name and email broadcast on Ustream and entered into the record or minutes. The DeCab Board of Registration and Elections reserves the right at the board's sole discretion to add your email to the record or minutes without reading any evidence of the broadcast, or to read all or a portion of your email and to the record or minutes. All public comments will be limited to two minutes. Abrasive, profane, derogatory language, holding up signs, clapping, yelling, standing, laying the aisles to show support or opposition to a speaker will not be prohibited, but a show of hands or quietly standing in place will be permitted to show support or opposition to a speaker's position. Thank you. Is the the timer gonna count going to count down? Okay. Look at us. Moving into the 21st entry. Okay, so uh I'll just call uh I'm gonna call you guys in groups. So the first three um Michael Beach, Janet Grant, Betsy Shockleford. Well I'm waiting for this countdown. This is spiffy.

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