Sec. of State Brad Raffensperger calls Georgia's new voter registration system faster, more secure
ATLANTA - State and local election officials will begin the transition to a new voter registration system sometime in March.
Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger announced the upcoming switch on Wednesday at a news conference inside the state Capitol.
"This new system is more advanced, more secure and more user-friendly and will give our election directors and my office new tools to better manage our election efforts," Raffensperger said.
According to the Secretary of State's Office, Georgia's current system ElectioNet, or E-Net, has been in place since 2013.
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"Technology evolves just as our threat environment evolves," said Raffensperger. "Our team realized that we needed a faster, better, friendly and more secure system and that's why we chose this more secure technology platform."
The new system is called Georgia Registered Voter Information System, or GRVIS.
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Raffensperger said his office has partnered with the software company Salesforce and technology consulting firm MTX Group to implement it. The new system will be housed on secure servers authorized by FED-RAMP, the Federal Risk and Authorization Management Program.
A spokesperson for the Secretary of State's Office said the system will cost less than $3.5 million.
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The move comes ahead of what will be a big election year and while some may question the timing, Bartow County Election Supervisor Joseph Kirk said it comes at a good time.
"In a year like this we see waves of registration. It's going to help with that," Kirk explained. "It's going to help with reporting. It's going to help with the check-in process for advance voting. It really is going to help with everything."
The Secretary of State's Office said voters will not see a change, but Kirk said they will feel it.
"I think everybody's going to notice a difference. It should be a lot more stable, a lot easier for everyone, including the voters interfacing with the My Voter Page. We're all really excited about this," said Kirk.
The state will keep E-Net online to serve as a backup during the transition.