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Record of Proceedings

DeKalb County Board of Registration and Elections Special Called Meeting – August 31, 2026

Board of Commissioners & Committees — Monday, August 31, 2026

BodyDekalb County, Georgia

SessionBoard of Commissioners & Committees

DateMonday, August 31, 2026

StatusFILED

Video Record

0:00 / 20:00

Transcript — VerbatimClick a timed line to jump · ⧉ to share it

0:09

Good afternoon and welcome to today's Board of Registration and Election Special Called Meeting.

0:15

Can I get the roll call, please?

0:16

Good afternoon, board members.

0:18

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

0:22

Fossil Alpa Rahman?

0:23

Here.

0:24

Travis Baldwin.

0:26

Gail Lee.

0:27

Here.

0:28

Dele Loman.

0:29

Here.

0:30

Carly Swift.

0:31

Here.

0:31

Madam Chair, you have a quorum.

0:33

Thank you.

0:34

Can I get a motion to approve the agenda?

0:37

So move.

0:38

Second.

0:39

All in favor.

0:40

Aye.

0:41

Aye.

0:41

Great.

0:42

Okay.

0:42

Now we are going to have public comment.

0:50

Public comment.

0:52

Public comment may be made in person or submitted by sending an email of no one printed page or less at a minimum of 12 point font to elections public comment at DeCab County GA.gov, which must be received between 35 and 5 minutes before the schedule start of the meeting.

1:10

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

1:14

By submitting the email for public comment, you agree to have your name and email broadcast on the Ustream and enter into the official record in minutes.

1:22

The DeCab Board of Registration and Elections reserves the right.

1:27

At the DeCab County Board of Registration and Elections solo discretion to one, add your email to the record without reading any of it into the broadcast, or read all or a portion of your email into the record in minutes.

1:41

All public comments will be limited to two minutes.

1:44

Abusive, profane, derogatory language, holding up signs, clapping, yelling, standing, or lying in the aisles to show support for or opposition to a speaker will not be permitted, but a show of hands are quietly standing in place, will be permitted to show support for our opposition to a speaker's actions.

2:07

We have two public comments.

2:10

Board.

2:12

Okay, thank you.

2:13

And one electronic.

2:14

Yes.

2:14

All right.

2:15

So Ms.

2:16

Bigowski, if you want to come up first, then we'll have Dr.

2:20

Harris come back and read the public, the um e-comment, and then Liz Troop.

2:30

Good afternoon.

2:32

My name is Dr.

2:32

Kendra Bogalski.

2:33

I'm a DeCab County resident and chair of the DeCab County Republican Party.

2:39

I'm disappointed to learn that this board did not approve a motion for saying the pledge of allegiance before meetings.

2:46

Reciting the pledge is a brief unifying civic practice used by school boards, city councils, county commissions, and the Congress of the United States.

2:56

Making that simple act a point of division is unnecessary politicization, which is especially unflattering for a board that governs elections of representatives to our county, state, and country.

3:08

The words of the pledge matter.

3:10

We pledge allegiance to the republic for which it stands.

3:15

We do not pledge allegiance to a democracy.

3:18

That distinction is not a talking point.

3:21

It is the form of government established by our constitution.

3:26

When a public body charged with administering elections meets this reminder, it contributes to a widespread civic error.

3:35

The belief that America is a simple majority rule democracy rather than a republic.

3:43

Election officials should model the constitutional language they are sworn to uphold.

4:09

Thank you.

4:19

One email comment submitted on Monday, August 31st at 1148 a.m.

4:25

My name is Nancy Arnold, and I am a DeCab County resident.

4:30

I'm appalled to learn that the board did not approve a motion for saying the pledge of allegiance before meetings.

Discussion Breakdown — Share of Meeting

Election Administration█████████████████████████████████████████████76%

Procedural██████████████24%

Summary of Proceedings

DeKalb County Board of Registration and Elections Special Called Meeting – August 31, 2026

The DeKalb County Board of Registration and Elections held a special called meeting on August 31, 2026, to certify the results of the August 25, 2026 Congressional District 13 special election runoff. The meeting also included public comments regarding the Pledge of Allegiance and voter identification requirements, and board members discussed these topics.

Public Comments & Testimony

Dr. Kendra Bogalski, chair of the DeKalb County Republican Party, expressed disappointment that the board did not approve a motion to recite the Pledge of Allegiance before meetings. She argued that reciting the pledge is a unifying civic practice and that the wording "pledge allegiance to the republic" is important for election officials to model constitutional language. She also noted that America is a constitutional republic, not a simple majority-rule democracy.
An email from Nancy Arnold, a DeKalb County resident, was read into the record. She echoed similar disappointment and questioned the reason for rejecting the pledge. She also asked for clear guidance from the elections office on what documentation will be required at the polls, noting that Georgia driver's licenses are Real ID compliant and already verified for citizenship.

Discussion Items

Director Smith presented a post-election report for the Congressional District 13 special election runoff. Key statistics: total active voters in the district: 14,595; ballots cast: 623 (turnout 4.27%); election day voters: 274; early voting voters: 349; three absentee ballots requested but none returned; no provisional ballots cast. Equipment deployed included 8 poll pads, 20 touch screens, and 8 scanners.
Board member Gail Lee commented on the public comments, expressing support for reciting the Pledge of Allegiance and suggesting the board reconsider that motion. She also asked for clarification that a Real ID driver's license is sufficient proof of citizenship to reassure voters.
Board member Dele Loman strongly opposed reciting the Pledge of Allegiance, stating that it is not unifying given the current political climate where rights are being threatened. She argued that requiring the pledge is offensive and that Georgia Real ID is sufficient proof of citizenship, with no need for additional documentation.

Key Outcomes

The board unanimously voted to certify the August 25, 2026 Congressional District 13 special election runoff results. The motion was made, seconded, and passed with all in favor.
The board did not take any action on the Pledge of Allegiance or voter ID issues; these were discussed during board comments only.
No executive session was held.
The meeting was adjourned, and board members stayed to sign the certification documents.

Meeting Transcript

Good afternoon and welcome to today's Board of Registration and Election Special Called Meeting. Can I get the roll call, please? Good afternoon, board members. When I call your name, please signify by saying here. Fossil Alpa Rahman? Here. Travis Baldwin. Gail Lee. Here. Dele Loman. Here. Carly Swift. Here. Madam Chair, you have a quorum. Thank you. Can I get a motion to approve the agenda? So move. Second. All in favor. Aye. Aye. Great. Okay. Now we are going to have public comment. Public comment. Public comment may be made in person or submitted by sending an email of no one printed page or less at a minimum of 12 point font to elections public comment at DeCab County GA.gov, which must be received between 35 and 5 minutes before the schedule start of the meeting. The body of your email must include your first and last name. By submitting the email for public comment, you agree to have your name and email broadcast on the Ustream and enter into the official record in minutes. The DeCab Board of Registration and Elections reserves the right. At the DeCab County Board of Registration and Elections solo discretion to one, add your email to the record without reading any of it into the broadcast, or read all or a portion of your email into the record in minutes. All public comments will be limited to two minutes. Abusive, profane, derogatory language, holding up signs, clapping, yelling, standing, or lying in the aisles to show support for or opposition to a speaker will not be permitted, but a show of hands are quietly standing in place, will be permitted to show support for our opposition to a speaker's actions. We have two public comments. Board. Okay, thank you. And one electronic. Yes. All right. So Ms. Bigowski, if you want to come up first, then we'll have Dr. Harris come back and read the public, the um e-comment, and then Liz Troop. Good afternoon. My name is Dr. Kendra Bogalski. I'm a DeCab County resident and chair of the DeCab County Republican Party. I'm disappointed to learn that this board did not approve a motion for saying the pledge of allegiance before meetings. Reciting the pledge is a brief unifying civic practice used by school boards, city councils, county commissions, and the Congress of the United States. Making that simple act a point of division is unnecessary politicization, which is especially unflattering for a board that governs elections of representatives to our county, state, and country. The words of the pledge matter. We pledge allegiance to the republic for which it stands.

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