Cobb County Lawsuit Seeks Overnight Delivery for 2,900 Delayed Absentee Ballots

Nearly 2,900 voters in Cobb County did not receive the absentee ballots they requested, according to a lawsuit filed Tuesday in federal court. The complaint asserts that the county’s mail vendor, York County Vote, failed to process the applications correctly, leaving a substantial number of ballots unmailed as the Tuesday election approaches. The legal action seeks a court order requiring the county to overnight the delayed ballots to ensure those voters can participate.

The plaintiff is Michael Olaribigbe, a resident of Marietta who requested a ballot in May 2020 but never received it. Olaribigbe is represented by the Elias Law Group, a Washington-based firm led by Marc Elias. The firm also operates Democracy Docket, a website that first reported on the specific data discrepancies within the county’s voting records. The lawsuit names the Cobb County Board of Elections and the county’s election director as defendants.

The complaint details that the vendor’s system required state addresses to be entered in a specific format, but the county did not use that system correctly. According to the filing, the county’s records show that all advanced absentee ballots in the county were delayed, including those for the November 2020 election and the November 2022 election. The lawsuit argues that the county knew or should have known about the processing failure because the vendor’s system returned state addresses that were not correctly entered.

A state law requires counties to mail absentee ballots requested by Tuesday. The lawsuit states that the county’s vendor, York County Vote, is responsible for the error. The document notes that the county has not provided any detailed information regarding the failure or the steps taken to remedy the situation. The plaintiffs argue that the delay has deprived voters of their right to vote and that the county’s inaction has made the problem worse.

The lawsuit was filed by a group of voters, including Olaribigbe, who are seeking a preliminary injunction. The complaint asks the judge to order the county to overnight the remaining delayed ballots. The filing states that the county has not corrected the error and that the vendor’s system continues to malfunction. The plaintiffs argue that without immediate action, thousands of voters will be unable to cast their ballots by the election deadline.

The lawsuit includes specific dates and numbers to demonstrate the scale of the issue. It cites the May 16, 2020, and May 11, 2022, elections as examples of the recurring problem. The document notes that the county’s vendor has been the subject of previous complaints but that the issue persists. The plaintiffs argue that the county’s failure to address the vendor’s error is a clear violation of state election laws.

The complaint concludes that the county must take immediate steps to distribute the remaining ballots. It requests that the court order the county to use overnight delivery for all outstanding ballots. The plaintiffs argue that this is the only way to ensure that the affected voters can participate in the Tuesday election. The lawsuit was filed in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Georgia.