ATLANTA — Georgia’s presidential preference primary has been postponed to May in response to the COVID-19 outbreak, Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger said.

The election has been pushed from March 24 to May 19 — the same date as the regular primary for a U.S. Senate race and other state offices.

The decision has bipartisan support, the Democratic Party of Georgia and voting rights advocacy groups speaking out in favor of postponing the primary for safety reasons.

In a press conference Monday, Raffensperger said that the decision was “necessary and prudent.”

State elections officials took the step because of concerns of crowded polling places and older poll workers who are venerable to infections. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention have issued guidelines to stay safe while voting in-person.

“We made the decision in the interest of public health, safety and security,” he said. “We made this decision for our poll workers, dedicated volunteers and voters in Georgia who should be able to vote without fear.”

Raffensperger assured that people who have already cast their ballots during early voting for the presidential primary will have their ballots counted.

Nearly 250,000 votes had already been cast in the partisan election before early voting closed this past weekend.

“Those who have already voted should be confident that their votes are secure and will be counted in May,” he said.

The average age of a poll worker is 70 years old, and local elections officials began seeing poll workers quit out of fear of contracting coronavirus. Local elections officials began urging the state to take action to delay the election, said Janine Eveler, Cobb County elections director.

Raffensperger said poll workers have been training for months on the ins-and-outs of the new voting system and should not be “undervalued.”

Georgia joins a number of states that have delayed elections amid coronavirus concerns. The Democratic Party of Georgia joined Raffensperger in the announcement.

“Our priority is to protect the health and safety of all Georgians and to ensure that as many Georgians as possible have an opportunity to vote,” Nikema Williams, chairwoman of the Democratic Party of Georgia, said in a statement.  “Continued in-person voting could compromise both goals.”

Raffensperger said his office is exploring a “robust absentee ballot program” to expand absentee voting across the state in lieu of in-person voting.