Primary election day in Georgia arrived Tuesday as voters braced for  and social distancing at the polls.It will be a unique election held amid the coronavirus pandemic.Here are minute-by-minute updates on Tuesday’s election from AJC reporters and photographers on the scene:10:15 p.m. update: After a tumultuous and contentious day, metro Atlanta polling places are officially closed.Human error or mechanical problems plagued many polling places. At some, hundreds of voters waited to cast their ballot – some for hours. State and local officials traded blame for what some deemed a...…Primary election day in Georgia arrived Tuesday as voters braced for  and social distancing at the polls.It will be a unique election held amid the coronavirus pandemic.Here are minute-by-minute updates on Tuesday’s election from AJC reporters and photographers on the scene:10:15 p.m. update: After a tumultuous and contentious day, metro Atlanta polling places are officially closed.Human error or mechanical problems plagued many polling places. At some, hundreds of voters waited to cast their ballot – some for hours. State and local officials traded blame for what some deemed a...WW…

Voters across metro Atlanta endured long lines and waited hours in heat and downpours to cast their ballot on Friday.Officials with Fulton, DeKalb and Cobb counties said a mix of social distancing measures and the fact that it was the last day of early voting before Tuesday’s primary led to unusuallylong lines.This is yet another challenge during an already bumpy election season. New  is in play. COVID-19 led to fewer polling places and poll workers.Article continues belowREAD | Counties also opened fewer early voting precincts assuming voters would cast absentee ballots after...…Voters across metro Atlanta endured long lines and waited hours in heat and downpours to cast their ballot on Friday.Officials with Fulton, DeKalb and Cobb counties said a mix of social distancing measures and the fact that it was the last day of early voting before Tuesday’s primary led to unusuallylong lines.This is yet another challenge during an already bumpy election season. New  is in play. COVID-19 led to fewer polling places and poll workers.Article continues belowREAD | Counties also opened fewer early voting precincts assuming voters would cast absentee ballots after...WW…

Election workers resumed counting votes Wednesday morning as they scanned hundreds of thousands of last-minute absentee ballots in Georgia's primary, leaving the final result of races .The time it takes to count so many paper ballots was expected in an election where a record number of Georgians — over 1.1 million — voted from home during the coronavirus pandemic.>>RESULTS: >>PHOTOS: But the uncertainty left voters and candidates waiting. It’s unclear whether counting would be completed Wednesday, but officials have warned the process could take a few days.After...…Election workers resumed counting votes Wednesday morning as they scanned hundreds of thousands of last-minute absentee ballots in Georgia's primary, leaving the final result of races .The time it takes to count so many paper ballots was expected in an election where a record number of Georgians — over 1.1 million — voted from home during the coronavirus pandemic.>>RESULTS: >>PHOTOS: But the uncertainty left voters and candidates waiting. It’s unclear whether counting would be completed Wednesday, but officials have warned the process could take a few days.After...WW…

A Georgia House committee voted Wednesday to prohibit election officials from mailing absentee ballot request forms to voters, as Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger did before this month’s primary election to encourage voting from home.The legislation would prevent the kind of large-scale absentee voting effort undertaken during the coronavirus pandemic, when Raffensperger  absentee ballot applications to 6.9 million Georgia voters.Over half of primary voters, more than 1.1 million, then cast absentee-by-mail ballots in the election.Democrats on the committee opposed the...…A Georgia House committee voted Wednesday to prohibit election officials from mailing absentee ballot request forms to voters, as Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger did before this month’s primary election to encourage voting from home.The legislation would prevent the kind of large-scale absentee voting effort undertaken during the coronavirus pandemic, when Raffensperger  absentee ballot applications to 6.9 million Georgia voters.Over half of primary voters, more than 1.1 million, then cast absentee-by-mail ballots in the election.Democrats on the committee opposed the...WW…

ProPublica is a nonprofit newsroom that investigates abuses of power. Sign up to receive as soon as they’re published.This article was co-published with The Atlanta Journal-Constitution.It was a stunning accusation: Two days before the 2018 election for Georgia governor, Republican Brian Kemp used his power as secretary of state to open an investigation into what he called a “failed hacking attempt” of voter registration systems involving the Democratic Party.But newly released case files from the Georgia Bureau of Investigation reveal that there was no such hacking attempt.The evidence...…ProPublica is a nonprofit newsroom that investigates abuses of power. Sign up to receive as soon as they’re published.This article was co-published with The Atlanta Journal-Constitution.It was a stunning accusation: Two days before the 2018 election for Georgia governor, Republican Brian Kemp used his power as secretary of state to open an investigation into what he called a “failed hacking attempt” of voter registration systems involving the Democratic Party.But newly released case files from the Georgia Bureau of Investigation reveal that there was no such hacking attempt.The evidence...WW…

Editor’s note: This article has been updated with developments in Fulton County.Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger on Monday urged voters to return their absentee ballots in time for the June 9 primary, even as thousands of Fulton County voters are  for their ballots to arrive and the coronavirus forced some early voting locations to .About 1 million voters who requested absentee ballots haven’t yet turned them in, according to state election data through Sunday.“Vote from the convenience of your own kitchen table. Take your time to do it, but get it done as soon as you can,”...…Editor’s note: This article has been updated with developments in Fulton County.Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger on Monday urged voters to return their absentee ballots in time for the June 9 primary, even as thousands of Fulton County voters are  for their ballots to arrive and the coronavirus forced some early voting locations to .About 1 million voters who requested absentee ballots haven’t yet turned them in, according to state election data through Sunday.“Vote from the convenience of your own kitchen table. Take your time to do it, but get it done as soon as you can,”...WW…

The General Assembly recently  a bill to help police enforce marijuana laws without hindering the state's young hemp farming industry.But prosecutors and police say it won’t change how they handle suspected marijuana cases.Possession of small amounts of marijuana will remain  in several , and a low priority in many others. Misdemeanor cases are more likely to result in diversion classes or dismissals than prosecutions.Police can’t tell the difference between illegal marijuana and legal hemp plants, and law enforcement officials said testing small amounts of green leafy...…The General Assembly recently  a bill to help police enforce marijuana laws without hindering the state's young hemp farming industry.But prosecutors and police say it won’t change how they handle suspected marijuana cases.Possession of small amounts of marijuana will remain  in several , and a low priority in many others. Misdemeanor cases are more likely to result in diversion classes or dismissals than prosecutions.Police can’t tell the difference between illegal marijuana and legal hemp plants, and law enforcement officials said testing small amounts of green leafy...WW…

Georgia election officials said Tuesday they will correct absentee ballot instructions that  told voters to insert ballots into envelopes that no longer exist.Instructions mailed with future absentee ballots will tell voters that ballots should be placed inside a folded piece of paper labeled “Official absentee ballot,” which replaced an inner envelope that secured ballots in previous elections.The inner envelope protected the secrecy of ballots so they couldn't be matched with voters' information printed on the outer envelope. Without the inner envelope in , a county election worker...…Georgia election officials said Tuesday they will correct absentee ballot instructions that  told voters to insert ballots into envelopes that no longer exist.Instructions mailed with future absentee ballots will tell voters that ballots should be placed inside a folded piece of paper labeled “Official absentee ballot,” which replaced an inner envelope that secured ballots in previous elections.The inner envelope protected the secrecy of ballots so they couldn't be matched with voters' information printed on the outer envelope. Without the inner envelope in , a county election worker...WW…

The cost of a stamp to  in Georgia's primary has been criticized in a recent lawsuit as an unconstitutional poll tax and an obstacle to casting your ballot.But postage to return absentee ballots isn’t truly required, no matter what voters have been told.The U.S. Postal Service has a long-standing policy of delivering absentee ballots even if they lack sufficient postage, usually at least the cost of a 55-cent first-class stamp, depending on the weight of the ballot.So while voters will be asked to pay for postage, they don’t really have to. It’s probably safer to add stamps, but mail...…The cost of a stamp to  in Georgia's primary has been criticized in a recent lawsuit as an unconstitutional poll tax and an obstacle to casting your ballot.But postage to return absentee ballots isn’t truly required, no matter what voters have been told.The U.S. Postal Service has a long-standing policy of delivering absentee ballots even if they lack sufficient postage, usually at least the cost of a 55-cent first-class stamp, depending on the weight of the ballot.So while voters will be asked to pay for postage, they don’t really have to. It’s probably safer to add stamps, but mail...WW…

Plaintiffs in the case had argued that the new maps illegally disenfranchised Black voters by carving up a multiracial Atlanta-area district held by Democratic U.S. Rep. Lucy McBath, but Jones rebuffed that argument.“Redistricting decisions by a legislative body with an eye toward securing partisan advantage does not alone violate” the Voting Rights Act, wrote Jones, who was appointed by President Barack Obama. “... The court finds that the General Assembly fully complied with this court’s order requiring the creation of a majority-Black congressional district in the region of the state...…Plaintiffs in the case had argued that the new maps illegally disenfranchised Black voters by carving up a multiracial Atlanta-area district held by Democratic U.S. Rep. Lucy McBath, but Jones rebuffed that argument.“Redistricting decisions by a legislative body with an eye toward securing partisan advantage does not alone violate” the Voting Rights Act, wrote Jones, who was appointed by President Barack Obama. “... The court finds that the General Assembly fully complied with this court’s order requiring the creation of a majority-Black congressional district in the region of the state...WW…