Bookman: Georgia election chaos is a deliberate policy choice

by Jay Bookman, Georgia Recorder, [This article first appeared in the Georgia Recorder, republished with permission]

April 24, 2026

The last thing Georgia needs in the 2026 midterms is more election-related chaos, more court fights and allegations of election theft, more distrust and more conspiracy-driven nonsense. Such nonsense is breaking our country apart.

Yet, whether through incompetence or design, that’s exactly where we appear to be headed.

The problem dates back to 2024, when the General Assembly passed a law that required significant changes in how the state conducts its elections and set an implementation deadline of July 1 of this year. 

Since then, however, state leaders have done little or nothing to implement the changes that they themselves required. Machinery needs to be purchased and installed, the federal government has to certify that equipment, and staff has to be trained on it. None of that has happened.

As a result, county election officials, the people who actually have to run the operation dictated by the state, now find themselves trapped, like an oil-tanker captain in the Strait of Hormuz, not knowing where to turn or what to do.

“If legislation is not passed, Georgia’s voting laws will likely end up in court, putting Georgia’s well-run and timely reported elections in jeopardy and resulting in chaos,” the Georgia Association of Voter Registration and Election Officials warned in a statement last month.

As the association noted, it didn’t have to be like this. In the recent session of the General Assembly, the state House approved legislation by a vote of 132-39 that would have pushed the deadline for election changes back to 2028, allowing time to implement the changes fairly and efficiently. The bill had strong Republican support, with only six of 99 House Republicans voting against it.

However, the bill was never brought to a vote in the Senate, where Lt. Gov. Burt Jones presides. 

As you know, Jones is running for the GOP nomination for governor, and election-related conspiracy plays a central role in his political identity. 

Jones was a “false elector” in 2020. He argued in favor of calling the General Assembly into special session that year so legislators could try to override the decision by Georgia voters’ to give the state’s electoral votes to Joe Biden. 

After that failed, Jones joined the state of Texas in asking the U.S. Supreme Court to throw out every vote cast by his fellow Georgians, effectively stripping his constituents of a voice. And late last year, he appointed Salleigh Grubbs, a well-known election fabulist, to the State Election Board, where she’ll have ample opportunity to cause trouble in the weeks and months ahead.

As lieutenant governor, Jones almost certainly made the decision not to allow a Senate vote on postponing election changes. 

Jones’ history already tells us how little regard he has for fair elections. He has proved more than willing to try to wrangle victory through the courts or legal machinations that he could not win from voters themselves. To some, it seems, election chaos is not a disaster to be avoided, it is an opportunity to be exploited.

Georgia Recorder is part of States Newsroom, a nonprofit news network supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. Georgia Recorder maintains editorial independence. Contact Editor Jill Nolin for questions: info@georgiarecorder.com.