Elections Board Reduces Cherokee Voter Precincts

The Cherokee County Board of Elections on Monday approved slashing the number of precincts throughout the county.

The board approved reducing the number from 42 to 28. The change would mean reducing the number of schools used as polling places from 17 to 7. 

Furthermore, the change means voter will travel no more than 13.07 miles to get to their designated polling place and the average distance a voter will have to travel is 2.93 miles.

Janet Munda, supervisor for elections and voter registration, said she asked the board to allow her to taken into consideration any reason that would compel her to postpone the changes going into effect. 

For example, Munda said a special election held in January or February could possibly warrant a delay.

She also said she could possibly push back the effective date if she felt ElectioNet, the new voter registration system it will use, is "not up to standards to be able to make this huge change in Cherokee county." 

The changes would have to go into effect by March for the May 2014 primaries and if a special election was held in January or February, "there’s no way we could get it done." 

Along with reducing costs and the number of precincts, the changes would also reduce the number of split precincts throughout the county.  

The 2012 reapportionment process has resulted in Cherokee having a total of 55 splits in all precincts, meaning voters can live in one precinct, but may not vote for the same elected official as their neighbors. 

For example, voters in the Little River precinct are represented in the Georgia Senate by either Brandon Beach (R-Alpharetta) or John Albers (R-Roswell). 

The change would reduce the number of splits to 39, thus reducing the number of ballots the elections office would need to print.