Franklin Co. Looking to Consolidate Voting Precincts

By MJ Kneiser, WLHR Radio, Lavonia

Two years ago, the Franklin County Board of Elections and Registrations announced it planned to consolidate voting precincts.

But the idea did not receive support from the voting public and the matter seemed to have been dropped.

However on Wednesday, the Elections Board once again announced it plans to consolidate voting precincts from the current 13 to seven.

The board voted for the consolidation at their last meeting on Monday, July 27.

Elections Board Chair Doug Kidd said Wednesday the Board has reached a final plan on how the consolidation will take place.

According to Kidd, there will be seven precincts in the county: the four city precincts, one precinct in Northeast Franklin County, one precinct in West Franklin County, and one precinct in Southwest Franklin County.

Kidd said the Board has changed boundaries in some places so that voter numbers in each precinct will be similar.

He said the consolidation will bring projected financial savings for each election as well as other benefits.

“There were a number of concerns the Elections Board had,” Kidd said. “First it will help save taxpayers money. Second there was an issue with the number of voting machines the County has. With 13 precincts, it makes it very hard and stretched the Board of Elections resources. Paring down the precincts makes it easier for the Registrar and Board of Elections to oversee elections on election day.”

Kidd said the goal is for each polling place within the new precincts to be no further than the local grocery store.

According to Kidd, the election board is hoping to have the consolidation done quickly.

“We would like to have it in place as soon as possible,” he said Wednesday. “There are some concerns over certain precincts being consolidated in time for November and those might be held off for the following year. We’re still looking at that right now.”

Kidd said anyone interested in commenting on the decision is welcome to do so.

“We certainly welcome any comments,” Kidd said. “Nothing is official yet. We just decided to go forward with it and put the notice in the paper and let the community know about it. Certainly if anybody has any comments and there is enough for a meeting, we will schedule a meeting to hear their comments.”

Kidd said even with public comment, the board fully intends to move forward with the consolidation plan.
Kidd noted that most neighboring counties have already pared down their precinct numbers to save money at election time, including Rabun and Stephens Counties which now have only one precinct.

Work on consolidation will continue meantime and the Board of Elections thanked everyone who has been helping with the project.

“The Board of Elections and Registration greatly appreciate all the suggestions, help, and support that the voters of Franklin County have offered,” Kidd said. “We especially want to thank our tireless superintendent, Gina Chappelear for \her time and effort in this lengthy project.”

Kidd said more information on the consolidation effort will be released as the plan moves ahead.

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