State officials call on removal of Spalding County election head

SPALDING COUNTY, Ga. - Several elected officials are calling for the removal of the Spalding County election director after serious management issues came to light.

Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger was joined by the Spalding County legislative delegation in calling for Spalding County Elections Supervisor Marcia Ridley to resign or be removed due to poor decision-making during the November 3 general election.

“County elections officials are responsible for ensuring the voting process is smooth and efficient and must take responsibility when they fail,” said Secretary Raffensperger. “Georgians statewide waited on average just 3 minutes on Election Day but poor decision making in Spalding County denied those voters a quick and reliable voting experience. The serious management issues we saw in Spalding County on Election Day demonstrate that new leadership is needed to uphold election integrity there.”

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State election officials said there were issues with the voting systems the morning of the election and proper procedures were bypassed. At issue was the use of emergency ballots, which are scanned immediately, versus provisional ballots, which are processed differently. Officials said the decision to use provisional ballots put the integrity of the election at risk.

Officials also said Ridley spread baseless and inaccurate rumors stating there was an “update” made to the voting system on the night before the election that caused problems with the machines.

The Spalding County legislative delegation consists of Sen. Marty Harbin, Rep. David Knight, and Rep. Karen Mathiak.

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