DeKalb operations committee approves six precinct boundary changes affecting about 3,057 voters

The DeKalb County Operations Committee on a voice vote approved six precinct boundary changes recommended by the Board of Registration and Elections, a change elections staff said will move 3,057 voters to new polling places and change precinct assignments for another 421 voters without creating new polling locations.

The changes, presented by Keisha Smith, director of Voter Registration and Elections, were approved after a brief presentation and questions from commissioners about polling-place names and signage. "As of yesterday, we were at 599,974 registered voters," Smith said, and described the package as centered on "efficiency and operations, integrity and just excellence in elections." She said three of the changes reduce travel distance for voters and three realign precincts with recent municipal annexations.

The precinct adjustments include moves tied to Avondale annexations so newly annexed properties will vote with Avondale precincts; two houses shifted among Cross Keys, Woodward and Briarcliff precinct maps to align annexation boundaries; and accessibility-driven moves intended to reduce travel distance for voters near county lines and to avoid having Rowland Elementary voters cross Interstate 285 to reach their polling place. Smith said the Board of Registration and Elections approved the changes in March and that the county solicited input via town halls and an online survey to inform the proposals.

Smith described an outreach plan that includes direct notifications, press releases, social media, and signage at both former and new locations. She told commissioners that, beginning January of this year, the vendor No Ink now prints and mails precinct cards directly under contract with the Secretary of State; the county receives monthly lists from the vendor and signs off before mailings. "They print them, and we mail them," Smith said in explanation of the new process, adding that the vendor now handles end-to-end printing and mailing so the county does not perform final mailings itself.

Commissioners asked operational questions about polling-place names (for example the Avondale precinct naming and the former Avondale High polling location now at DeKalb School of the Arts) and about sign inventory for election-day wayfinding. Elections staff said they completed an inventory of signage and contracted with an outside vendor to print replacements as needed.

The committee approved the changes by voice vote after discussion. The action will be reflected in the Board of Registration and Elections’ precinct files and in outreach materials prepared for this year’s elections. The committee did not record a roll-call tally in the meeting transcript; members approved the motion by voice vote.

The precinct changes are scheduled to be publicized ahead of the June election, which Smith said will include a statewide Public Service Commission contest as the single countywide race on the ballot.

Ending: Elections staff said they will continue outreach to impacted voters through the remainder of the election cycle and will provide commissioners with follow-up information about sign distribution and the timing of mailed precinct cards.