Early Voting In Special Election Starts Dec. 17

Early voting in the Jan. 8, 2013 special election to fill the state House District 21 and Senate District 21 seats will begin next week. 

Voting will get underway from 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. Dec. 17-21 at the Stone Elections Building in downtown Canton.

Early voting will continue Dec. 27-28, on Dec. 31 and Jan. 2-4, 2013, during those same hours. No early voting on Saturdays will be scheduled. 

The office will be closed Dec. 24-26 and on Jan. 1 for the holidays. 

The deadline to register to vote in the election is at the close of business on Friday. 

Only voters in the 29 out of 42 county precincts that cover both seats can cast ballots for the election. Voters can click here to see which precincts will cast ballots in the election. 

The election scheduled for 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. Tuesday Jan. 8 in those selected precincts. 

Qualifying for both races continues today from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Tuesday Dec. 11 and from 8 a.m. to noon tomorrow.

Candidates can qualify at the Elections Division of the Office of Secretary of State, 802 West Tower, 2 Martin Luther King, Jr. Drive Southeast in Atlanta. The fee to qualify is $400 for each seat. 

Cherokee County Elections Supervisor Janet Munda said the special election's impact to her budget will be between $25,000 and $30,000.

Munda said the "normal" things the office does to prepare for an election will take place, such as training about 100 poll workers, printing ballots, delivery of machines to precincts, budgeting for overtime for staff and sending out absentee ballots. 

State Rep. Sean Jerguson (R-Holly Springs) and Greater North Fulton Chamber of Commerce President Brandon Beach have both announced their plans to run for the state senate seat, which was vacated after former Senator Chip Rogers abruptly resigned last week.

Canton attorney Bill Fincher, Holly Springs resident Scot Turner and Hickory Flat resident Brian Laurens are all seeking the state house seat as Republicans while Cherokee County attorney Natalie Bergeron has qualified to run as a Democrat.

Jerguson has to resign from the seat, which he was reapportioned into earlier this year and subsequently won in the Nov. 6 election.