Georgia lawmakers pass bill keeping QR codes for vote tabulation through 2026 midterms

Georgia will continue using QR codes on ballots to generate official election results through the 2026 midterm elections after the General Assembly passed legislation Tuesday delaying a previously scheduled transition. The measure, approved in both chambers during a special session, postpones until 2028 the requirement under a 2024 law that had set a July 1, 2026 deadline to replace the codes with an alternative tabulation method.

Lawmakers narrowed an earlier proposal that would have mandated hand counts in certain contests. The enacted version restricts such counts to the top two statewide races and only when the margin falls within one-half of one percentage point.

No replacement system had been identified by the time the special session began. The legislation leaves in place the state's existing audit and recount procedures.