Board of Elections

Agenda - Special Called Meeting Athens-Clarke County Board of Elections & Voter Registration January 26, 2022 @ 5:30pm Due to COVID-19 precautions, this meeting will be livestreamed at bit.ly/accboevids1. Bylaws of the Athens-Clarke County Board of Elections and Voter Registration (bit.ly/accboebylaws) A. Reading of the Board Member Oath of Office (O.C.G.A. § 21-2-70) “I do swear (or affirm) that I will as a member of the board of elections duly attend all ensuing primaries and elections during the continuance thereof, that I will to the best of my ability prevent any fraud, deceit, or abuse in carrying on the same, that I will make a true and perfect return of such primaries and elections, and that I will at all times truly, impartially, and faithfully perform my duties in accordance with Georgia laws to the best of my judgment and ability.” B. Adopt Agenda C. Public Comment Written comment may be emailed to the board members or delivered to the Athens-Clarke County Board of Elections and Voter Registration office before the start of the meeting. Rocky Raffle, Chairperson (willa.fambrough@accgov.com) Ann Till, Vice Chairperson (rocky.raffle@accgov.com) Adam Shirley, Secretary (adam.shirley@accgov.com) Willa Fambrough, Member (patricia.till@accgov.com) Hank Qadir, Member (hunaid.qadir@accgov.com) D. Resolution Regarding Redistricting Maps (Raffle) E. Announcements 1. February Regular Meeting a. Tuesday, February 8, 2022 @ 4:30pm 2. Upcoming voter registration deadlines for upcoming elections a. March 11 at noon is the deadline to qualify as a candidate in the May 24 election b. April 25 is the deadline to register in order to vote in the May 24 election c. April 25 is the deadline to register in order to vote in the June 21 runoff (if necessary) d. May 23 is the deadline to register in order to vote in federal contests in the June 21 runoff (if necessary) F. Adjourn A RESOLUTION OF THE BOARD OF ELECTIONS AND VOTER REGISTRATION OF ATHENS-CLARKE COUNTY GEROGIA TO REQUEST THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY TO ADOPT A REDISTRICTING MAP PROPOSED BY REPRESENTATIVE SPENCER FRYE; AND FOR OTHER PURPOSES. WHEREAS, in November 2021 the Mayor and Commission of the Athens-Clarke County Unified Government (the “Commission”) resolved to request the assistance of the Athens-Clarke County Board of Elections and Voter Registration (“Board of Elections”) in preparing and recommending the new Commission District boundaries (the “Redistricting Plan”) for approval by the Commission; and WHEREAS, the Resolution from the Mayor and Commission tasked the Board of Elections with ensuring that the provision of the Athens-Clarke County Charter were upheld, along with, where practical, redistricting best practices including voter convenience, avoiding dilution of likely voter affinity groups, preserving compact and contiguous districts, protecting incumbents, and avoiding racial or political gerrymandering; WHEREAS, on November 9, 2021, the Board of Elections submitted its recommended map (the “Board of Elections Map”) which equalized population, protected incumbents, preserved compact and contiguous districts and avoided dilution of voter affinity groups by preserving three majority-minority districts, to the Commission; and WHEREAS, on November 16, 2021, the Commission approved the Board of Elections Map and forwarded said map for approval to the Legislative and Congressional Reapportionment Office (“LCRO”); and WHEREAS, on December 7, 2021, the Board of Elections Map was submitted by the Athens- Clarke County Geospatial Information Office (“GIO”) to LCRO for technical review and certification; and WHEREAS, on December 10, 2021, LCRO requested minor revisions to the Board of Elections Map, including balancing population to one to one and a half percent of the mean, which caused minor adjustments to the boundary lines of Districts one, two, five and six, resulting in a revised map (“Revised Board of Elections Map”) created by the Athens-Clarke County Geospatial Information Office and certified by the LRCO; WHEREAS, on December 14, 2021, the Commission voted to adopt the Revised Board of Elections Map and send that map for approval by the General Assembly; and WHEREAS, on January 6, 2022, members of the state legislative delegation for Athens-Clarke County released an additional proposed map (the “Alternate Map”) which splits communities, displaces approximately sixty-seven percent of residential addresses into new districts, will cause voter confusion as precincts will need to change, fails to take into account protection of incumbents, and will cause undue financial burden and hardship on elections staff to reassign voters to their new districts and create ballots with multiple ballot combinations ; WHEREAS, on January 18, 2022, Representative Spencer Frye, a member of the state legislative delegation for Athens-Clarke County, released an additional proposed map (the “Compromise Map”) that displaces significantly fewer residential addresses to new districts, maintains an equalized population, protects likely voter affinity groups, will create fewer than thirty percent ballot combinations and will not result in financial burden or unnecessary hardship on elections staff; and WHEREAS, on January 20, 2022, at a Special Called Session, the Mayor and Commission voted 8-2 in favor of a resolution to support the Compromise Map submitted by Representative Frye to be submitted to the General Assembly for approval; NOW THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED, by the Superintendent of the Board of Elections and Voter Registration of Athens-Clarke County, Georgia and it is hereby so resolved by the authority of the same as follows: SECTION 1. The Superintendent of the Board of Elections and Voter Registration request and recommend the Compromise Map for consideration and approval by the General Assembly of Georgia. SECTION 2. This resolution shall become effective immediately upon its approval by the Board of Elections and Voter Registration. APPROVED AND ADOPTED this _____ day of January, 2022. BOARD OF ELECTIONS AND VOTER REGISTRATION OF ATHENS-CLARKE COUNTY By: ____________________________________ Rocky Raffle, Chairperson _____________________________________ Patricia A. Till, Vice Chairperson ______________________________________ Adam Shirley, Secretary ______________________________________ Willa Fambrough, Member _______________________________________ Hunaid Qadir, Member