Carter Center deploys nonpartisan observers to Fulton County to observe midterm election

ATLANTA, Ga. (Atlanta News First) - The Carter Center is helping to ensure current and future elections are safe, secure, and run smoothly.

For more than 30 years, the Carter Center has monitored elections in countries across the world.

Now they’re monitoring a major U.S, election from start to finish for the very first time and in their own backyard of Fulton County.

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The Fulton County Board of Elections and the Performance Review Board invited the Carter Center to observe in Fulton County.

The nonpartisan observers will be monitoring key aspects of the midterm election, like early voting, processing absentee ballots, Election Day, and post-Election Day procedures.

“Looking at questions like how the tabulation process is happening, is it happening smoothly, are there any issues with the tabulation process, is it happening according to policy,” said Avery Davis-Roberts, Associate Director for the Carter Center’s Democracy Program.

The Carter Center’s involvement in Fulton County falls under the performance review provisions of Georgia state law.

The nonprofit organization said they’re deploying nonpartisan observers independently and not acting on behalf of either the Performance Review Board or Fulton County.

“They don’t go looking for issues with election administrations, but they do note that things that go well and need to be improved,” said Davis-Roberts.

The Carter Center said these observers will present their findings so the board can investigate issues if needed, and so the county has the opportunity to improve on procedures for the next election.

“Fulton County may use the information to think about how they look at their standard operating procedures going forward,” said Davis-Roberts.

She said many of the non-partisan observers are Carter Center staff and Atlanta residents.

“The election results are neither here nor there to an observer,” said Davis-Roberts. “We’re really just there to observe the process, so the code of conduct is central to that sort of embodiment of the nonpartisan principles and all have to sign that code of conduct.”

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