Chattooga County Elections officials will begin the early processing of Absentee by Mail ballots on Monday, March 9, 2026, at 2:00 p.m. at the Registrar’s Office, 10017 Commerce Street in Summerville. The process is open to the public.

Early processing does not mean votes are being counted early. Instead, election workers carefully remove absentee ballots from their outer envelopes and prepare them for scanning. During this step, ballots are scanned into the system, but they are not tabulated or totaled.

Officials emphasize that actual vote tabulation will not occur until after the polls close on Election Day, in accordance with Georgia election law. The early processing step helps ensure results can be reported more efficiently once voting officially ends.

Residents who wish to observe the process may attend at the Registrar’s Office.