New notification service helps Georgia voters track their ballots

AUGUSTA, Ga. (WRDW/WAGT) - As the holidays approach and many of us are anxiously tracking packages, Georgia voters can now track something a little different: their ballot.

It only takes about two minutes to sign up, and notifications are sent to your phone when your absentee ballot application is received, when your ballot has been mailed out to you, as well as when the Board of Elections receives it back.

“There’s a service that we used for the first time in Georgia in November called Ballot Trax,” said Lynn Bailey, Richmond County Board of Elections director. “It will let you choose whether or not you’d like to receive notices to the status of your absentee ballot.”

Voters could check their ballot status before, through the My Voter page of the Secretary of State’s Office, but November was the first time voters didn’t have to tediously check a website over and over again.

Some voters who mailed absentee ballots in the general election wish they knew about it before.

“I would have known immediately when something happened rather than me getting tired of checking it, and then going several days without it,” said John Moore, a Georgia voter. “It would have helped me, I would have liked that. I could have relaxed and not have to check.”

But despite learning about the service, Moore says he’s going to vote in-person after all the stress he had voting absentee.

“I just — I wanna see my vote cast, so I’m going to do it early,” he said.

Others who are considering voting absentee say it would be a weight off their shoulders.

“That way I know my vote counted, it went in, it was found, recorded and that would be very important. Because I worry about voting, votes disappearing or getting lost or not going through properly,” said Rhonda Smith, another voter.

And in a year of so many unknowns, knowing where your ballot is, could likely take a load off.

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