Cobb County Absentee Voters Affected by Ballot Delays Told Vote Guaranteed to Count If Returned by Election Day

But the Georgia Supreme Court said the ballots won’t be counted until further instruction from the court.

A worker at the Fulton County Board of Registration and Elections processing absentee ballots at the State Farm Arena in Atlanta on Nov. 2, 2020. John Bazemore/AP Photo

The Georgia Supreme Court has ruled that Cobb County will accept—but not immediately count—absentee ballots after close of Election Day for over 3,000 voters who received late ballots, departing from a lower court decision that granted an extension for the voters to return their ballots by Nov. 8.

In a Nov. 4 order, the state Supreme Court granted an emergency motion by the Republican National Committee (RNC) and the Georgia Republican Party, allowing only absentee ballots received by the statutory deadline of 7 p.m. on Nov. 5 to be counted in Cobb County.