Early voting begins in Georgia for 2022 midterm election

ATLANTA - Georgians began to head to the polls Monday to cast their votes as early voting started for the upcoming midterm election.

Monday was the first day of early voting and this year, Georgians headed to the polls under a new law passed by the Republican-led legislature following the party's defeat in the 2020 presidential election.

The 98-page bill in Georgia contained dozens of changes to state voting law. They include shortening the time to request a mail ballot, rolling back the pandemic-driven expansion of ballot drop boxes and reducing early voting before runoff elections.

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The law also made it a misdemeanor to hand out food or drinks to any voter standing in line, and limits voters’ ability to cast a provisional ballot if they go to the wrong precinct. It also allows any Georgia voter to challenge the eligibility of an unlimited number of other voters within the same county.

The state had argued that the water and refreshment ban was necessary to protect against the potential for illegal campaigning or vote-buying. State lawyers also argued that it was too close to the upcoming election to make changes.

A man casts his ballot at an early voting location at the Gwinnett County Fairgrounds on October 24, 2020, in Lawrenceville, Georgia. (Photo by ELIJAH NOUVELAGE/AFP via Getty Images)

More than 4 million people could vote in the state’s elections this year, and if past patterns hold, more than half are likely to cast ballots before Election Day. Nearly 2.7 million Georgians voted early during the 2020 general election. 

There will be at least 17 days of early voting, starting on the Monday that is 22 days before Election Day until the Friday before an election. 

The law requires counties to have at least two Saturdays of early voting, with the option of offering voting on Sundays as well.

Previously in Georgia, a form of identification was required for voting in person but not for voting absentee by mail. The new law requires those requesting and returning ballots by mail to also submit a driver's license number or state ID number. If the voter does not have one, he or she can submit a photocopy of a different form of identification. 

Another change: If a voter goes to the wrong precinct in his or her county before 5 p.m., poll workers are supposed to direct that person to the correct precinct, rather than directing the voter to cast a provisional ballot. 

Voters in Georgia can already send in ballots by mail, with more than 1,000 received by Friday through the mail. More than 200,000 people have requested mail ballots already, with an Oct. 28 deadline to request them. 

Early voting in the state wraps up Nov. 4 with the Election Day set for Tuesday, Nov. 8.

For early voting, voters do not need to vote at an assigned polling location in their county. You can find all available early voting locations by visiting the Georgia Secretary of State's website and choosing your county.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.