“Georgia has the most secure elections in America and we intend to keep it that way. This bipartisan group brings together leaders with different backgrounds and perspectives who share a commitment to protecting every lawful vote and strengthening public confidence in our elections,” Raffensperger said.
The task force arrives as election procedures remain under intense scrutiny across the country. Georgia, in particular, has repeatedly found itself at the center of national battles over voting rules, election administration, ballot security, and confidence in reported results.
Raffensperger’s office says the new panel will focus on several areas that can become flashpoints during election season, including the accuracy of voter rolls, county election performance, administrative procedures, misinformation, and efforts to give the public greater visibility into how elections are conducted.
The secretary of state stressed that securing an election involves far more than what voters witness when they arrive at a polling location.
“Election security begins well before Election Day. There are months of preparation, testing, training, coordination, and security work that voters may never see. This Task Force will help ensure that work is coordinated and that Georgians understand the safeguards in place to protect their vote.”
The membership is notable for including political figures from both sides of the aisle.
Former Republican U.S. Rep. Drew Ferguson and former Republican U.S. Sen. Saxby Chambliss will participate alongside former Democratic Gov. Roy Barnes and former Democratic Atlanta Mayor Shirley Franklin. All four are associated with the Democracy Defense Foundation.
Election attorney Ben Ginsberg is also joining the panel.
Other members include former Georgia State Sen. Don Balfour, now a senior adviser to the Georgia Democracy Resilience Network; Bartow County Elections Supervisor Joseph Kirk; Muscogee County Elections and Registration Director Nancy Boren; Georgia Sheriffs’ Association Executive Director Terry Norris; and former Georgia Senate President Pro Tempore Eric Johnson, who serves as chairman of RightCount Georgia.
By mixing former politicians with officials who deal directly with election administration, Raffensperger appears to be positioning the panel as more than a political advisory board. County officials responsible for carrying out Georgia’s election laws will have a seat at the table alongside attorneys, law enforcement figures, and former officeholders.
Raffensperger also pushed back against the increasingly partisan nature of election debates, arguing that members were selected because they have reputations that extend beyond party politics.
“This group here, they’re well-respected members of the community. They’re on both sides of the aisle, but they are also recognized as being fair brokers of the truth. They’re not just saying things because they got orders from their party bosses,” the secretary said in a follow-up statement.
That bipartisan approach could be tested quickly.
Disputes over voter registration, voter-roll maintenance, county procedures, election technology, and the spread of inaccurate information have increasingly become national political battles. Georgia has experienced those fights firsthand, making the state a natural testing ground for whether a bipartisan group can find common ground on election safeguards.
The task force is not expected to operate exclusively behind closed doors.
According to Raffensperger, members will take part in regional training programs for election workers, participate in policy roundtables, and work with local officials throughout Georgia. Regional roundtable discussions are expected to get underway sometime after Labor Day.
Those meetings could give county administrators an opportunity to bring concerns directly to the task force rather than waiting for problems to surface during a major election.
For conservatives concerned about election integrity, the effectiveness of the panel will ultimately depend on what it produces. Bipartisan credentials alone will not settle persistent questions about voter-roll accuracy, consistent enforcement of election rules, or accountability when counties fail to meet state standards.
But putting those issues explicitly on the task force’s agenda ensures they will receive attention.
Raffensperger is betting that bringing political veterans, election administrators, legal specialists, and law enforcement voices into the same room can identify vulnerabilities before they turn into Election Day controversies.
The larger goal is straightforward: make election procedures easier to understand, identify potential problems earlier, enforce standards across Georgia’s counties, and give voters greater confidence that every lawful ballot is properly handled.
In a state that has repeatedly become ground zero for America’s election fights, the new task force will have no shortage of issues to tackle.
Now Georgians will be watching to see whether it delivers measurable reforms — and whether a bipartisan panel can succeed in an area where partisan trust has become increasingly difficult to find.
