‘Blue Ribbon' Election Panel Starts Work That Could Shape Proposals For 2026 Session

By Maya Homan, Georgia Recorder

July 16, 2025

A special House committee focused on elections kicked off its first meeting at the state Capitol Tuesday, as state lawmakers gathered to solicit testimony from elections officials and activists on how to improve Georgia elections.

The committee, tagged as a “blue ribbon” panel, aims to evaluate Georgia’s current election policies and provide recommendations for new election laws ahead of Georgia’s 2026 legislative session. It is chaired by state Rep. Tim Fleming, a Covington Republican, who recently became the first candidate to launch a bid for secretary of state.

Georgia’s election system has been under immense scrutiny since the 2020 election, when President Donald Trump falsely stated that the election was stolen from him in Georgia and several other swing states. The current secretary of state, Republican Brad Raffensperger, resisted pressure from Trump to overturn Georgia’s election results in his favor.

In the years since, the Republican-controlled state Legislature and State Election Board have sought to strip power from the office, removing Raffensperger from his former position as chair of the State Election Board before ousting him from the board altogether. The Trump-aligned State Election Board has also been deluged by activists urging them to implement sweeping changes they say will boost confidence in the outcome of the elections, including mandatory ballot hand-counts and the elimination of voting machines.

Republican Rep. Tim Fleming of Covington recently became the first candidate to launch a bid for secretary of state. Ross Williams/Georgia Recorder

In his opening remarks, Fleming also emphasized the need to restore public confidence in Georgia’s elections.

“The legitimacy of our government — local, state and federal — rests squarely on the public’s trust in the electoral process,” he said. “That trust must be earned and maintained through transparency, consistency and integrity at every level, from the precincts in our neighborhoods to the local election superintendent’s offices and counties, to the Secretary of State’s office here in Atlanta.”

Raffensperger, who was first elected as the state’s top election official in 2018, has not said what his plans are for next year.

During its six scheduled meetings, the committee plans to evaluate the role that the secretary of state’s office and the State Election Board play in overseeing elections across the state, Fleming added.

Though the committee has not yet indicated which changes they would like to see enacted, legislation introduced during the 2025 legislative session may offer some clues. Earlier this year, Fleming authored a controversial election bill that would prohibit Georgia from sharing voter information with third-party groups like the Electronic Registration Information Center, limit voters’ ability to drop off absentee ballots on the final weekend before Election Day and expand poll-watching areas, among other provisions. The bill, HB 397, successfully passed through both chambers, but failed to gain final passage before the Legislature adjourned.

Those provisions may be among those considered by the committee as they compile their official recommendations for the 2026 session. Other study committees scheduled to meet this summer will examine artificial intelligence, insurance rate hikes and medical marijuana policies.

The next meeting of the elections committee is slated for Aug. 8 in Rockmart, Georgia.

The Georgia Recorder,an independent, nonprofit news organization, connects public policies to stories of the people and communities affected by them through a steady mix of in-depth reporting, blog posts, and social media updates on the latest news and progressive commentary. The Recorder is part of States Newsroom, a national 501(c)(3) nonprofit supported by grants and a coalition of donors and readers.