HB952: HB952 Bulloch County; board of elections; increase size to five members

Bulloch County's board of elections and registration currently has three members, all appointed by the county's governing authority without input from political parties. House Bill 952 rewrites the 2009 law that created the board, increasing it to five members and changing the appointment process. Two of the five seats would now be filled based on nominee lists submitted by the local executive committees of the two political parties whose gubernatorial candidates received the most votes in the last general election, though the county governing authority can reject nominees it finds unsuitable. The other three seats remain direct appointments by the county governing authority. The three current board members would keep serving out their existing terms, with future four year terms filled under the new rules. The two new party-nominated seats would start with one year terms ending December 31, 2027, then move to four year terms. The law takes effect July 1, 2026 for appointing the two additional members, and January 1, 2027 for all other purposes.

• Increases the Bulloch County Board of Elections and Registration from three members to five members.
• Creates a new nomination process for two seats, drawing from lists of up to five nominees submitted by the local executive committees of the top two vote-getting parties in the last governor's race.
• Allows the county governing authority to reject all nominees on a submitted list if it decides none are suitable for the board.
• Lets the three current board members finish their existing terms, after which their seats and successors follow the same appointment process as before.
• Sets one year initial terms for the two new party-nominated seats, running from January 1, 2027 to December 31, 2027, before switching to four year terms.
• Sets separate effective dates: July 1, 2026 for appointing the two new members and January 1, 2027 for all other provisions.

Bulloch County's governing authority, which appoints board members; the county's board of elections and registration itself; local political party executive committees, which gain a role in nominating some board members; and Bulloch County voters, whose election administration board is changing size and structure.

Adding two seats and giving political parties a nomination role changes who sits on the board that runs elections and voter registration in Bulloch County. Current board members keep their seats through their terms, so the practical shift in board makeup phases in gradually through 2027.

• Section 1 revises Section 2 of the 2009 Act, setting the board at five members, all electors and residents of Bulloch County appointed by the county's governing authority.
• Subsections (b) and (c) create two seats filled from nominee lists (up to five names) submitted by the top two parties' local executive committees, with lists due at least 90 days before the seat is filled.
• The governing authority can decline to appoint anyone from a nominee list if it decides none of the nominees are suitable.
• Subsection (d) keeps three seats as direct appointments by the governing authority without party nomination lists.
• Subsection (e) lets the three sitting members finish their current unexpired terms, with future terms set at four years.
• Subsection (f) gives the two new party-nominated seats one-year initial terms from January 1, 2027 to December 31, 2027, then four-year terms afterward.
• Section 2 sets the effective date as July 1, 2026 for appointing the two additional members and January 1, 2027 for all other purposes.
• Section 3 repeals conflicting laws.

1. 2026-05-12Effective Date 2026-07-01
2. 2026-05-12Act 646
3. 2026-05-12House Date Signed by Governor (House)
4. 2026-04-06House Sent to Governor (House)
5. 2026-02-17Senate Passed/Adopted (Senate)
6. 2026-02-17Senate Committee Favorably Reported (Senate)
7. 2026-02-09Senate Read and Referred (Senate)
8. 2026-02-06House Passed/Adopted (House)

• Lehman Franklin (R, HD-160)Primary sponsor
• Butch Parrish (R, HD-158)
• Jon Burns (R, HD-159)

1. PassedHouse voteFebruary 6, 2026

   163 yea, 0 nay (7 not voting, 5 absent)

   Local Calendar : House Vote #480

2. PassedSenate voteFebruary 17, 2026

   48 yea, 1 nay (2 not voting, 3 absent)

   Local Consent Calendar: Senate Vote #548

• Bulloch County
• election administration
• board of elections
• local government appointments