ATLANTA – Georgia election officials are bringing back paper ballots – at least temporarily – in the city of Conyers local election, providing a glimpse of what may one day replace the state’s aging voting machines. 

The on-loan voting equipment went into action last week in Conyers, a small city just outside of Atlanta, as early voting started for the Nov. 7 election. 

With the system being used in the pilot program, called the ExpressVote Universal Voting System, voters are issued a paper ballot that they insert into a touch-screen voting machine, prints their choices onto the ballot. 

Voters can then review their selections on the paper ballot before inserting it into a tabulation machine, which scans the ballots and secures them in a locked box. If there’s a mistake, the voter is issued a new ballot.

“Our voters are spoiled now,” said Cynthia Welch, supervisor of elections in Rockdale County. “My poll workers and my voters are saying, ‘Do we have to go back to the old system next year?’ And my answer is, ‘Yes, unfortunately, we will have to go back.’

“It’s like test driving a new car for a whole week. You get used to it and then you have to take it back,” she added. 

Georgia is likely still years away from replacing its voting machines. Lawmakers last overhauled the state’s election system in 2002 when they agreed to spend $54 million on what is called direct recording electronic equipment, which is what voters now see at the polls. 

“As the existing system approaches the end of its life-cycle, it is appropriate to start exploring future options,” said Jared Thomas, a spokesman for the Secretary of State’s Office. 

It would likely cost more than $100 million to buy a new system, train officials in all 159 counties and securely dispose of the now 15-year-old equipment, Thomas said. 

The Secretary of State’s Office, which initiated the pilot program in Rockdale County, has not asked the Legislature to fund new equipment, which would be selected through a request-for-proposal process. 

The type of system being tried in the pilot would also allow for a paper audit of election results, which may prove increasingly attractive amid growing concerns nationally about election security. 

There were also reports last year, including in Rockdale County, of voters saying their selection flipped during the voting process. 

Welch said she believes this may have been caused by a person’s middle finger inadvertently touching the screen while making a selection. 

Georgia’s current system allows voters to review their choices before casting their ballot, but the system in the trial gives voters an additional opportunity to review their selections on a paper ballot before submitting it. 

“I think the people in Georgia support being able to validate whether or not who they voted for was accurate and if their votes counted,” said state Rep. Doreen Carter, D-Lithonia, whose district includes part of Conyers and who said she saw a demonstration of the equipment. 

Carter said the pilot program is just an initial step toward updating the state’s voting system. Still, she said the trial will likely spark a conversation among state lawmakers about transitioning to a new system – and how to fund such an undertaking. 

“The uniformity of (the system) works and we’re going to have to step up and help with that,” Carter said. 

Jill Nolin covers the Georgia Statehouse for The Valdosta Daily Times, CNHI’s newspapers and websites.