Georgia Lawmakers Delay Voting Machine Changes, QR Code System to Remain for 2026 Midterms

Georgia state lawmakers have advanced legislation to postpone replacing the state's QR code-based voting system, ensuring the current method will remain in place for the November 2026 midterm elections. The delay came during a special legislative session called by Republican Governor Brian Kemp, who had sought both redistricting changes and election system reforms. On Wednesday, lawmakers rejected the governor's redistricting proposal, citing concerns about moving too quickly following a U.S. Supreme Court decision that weakened federal Voting Rights Act protections for minority voters.

The state's vote-counting system relies on QR codes printed on ballots to tally votes. A law passed two years ago had barred the use of QR codes for official vote counts beyond July 1, 2026, but no replacement method was ever implemented. The newly advanced bill would extend this deadline to January 1, 2028, and establish a committee to recommend specifications and standards for a new voting system. Republican state Senator Max Burns, who co-authored the legislation, stated the extension would "clarify and provide certainty to our election officials and to our electorate."

The voting system has become politically contentious. President Donald Trump claimed without evidence that Georgia's voting machines deleted or switched votes in the 2020 election, which he lost to Democrat Joe Biden. Trump's first executive order on elections in January 2025 singled out these machines, which are also used in counties across more than a dozen other states, though the order has been blocked by multiple courts. Election integrity advocates have raised concerns about the machines' vulnerability to hacking and the inability of voters to read QR codes to verify their selections.

Manufacturer Dominion Voting Systems has fought conspiracy theories about the equipment in court. County election officials have received conflicting guidance about vote counting procedures if lawmakers fail to extend the deadline or implement a new system before the 2026 election. The bill, which passed out of two Senate committees on Thursday, is scheduled for a full Senate vote on Saturday. Under the legislation, a committee comprising three members each appointed by the governor, the Senate, and the House would have until January 31, 2027, to recommend a new system, with implementation responsibility falling to state lawmakers for the 2028 election cycle.