---
title: O.C.G.A. § 21-2-372. Ballot description; watermark required.
collection: code
id: 21-2-372
cite_as: O.C.G.A. § 21-2-372 (2025)
canonical_url: https://georgiacommons.org/code/21-2-372
md_url: https://georgiacommons.org/code/21-2-372.md
text_url: https://georgiacommons.org/code/21-2-372/text
source_url: https://www.legis.ga.gov/api/document/docs/default-source/joint-features-document-library/t21-(v18)-pdf.pdf?sfvrsn=7e748c96_0#page=60
date: 2025
status: active
corpus_version: 2025-supplement-89aa39ab3c68
license: CC0-1.0
publisher: Georgia Commons, an independent project of Georgia Civic Data. Not the State of Georgia. Not legal advice.
up: https://georgiacommons.org/code/21-2.md
previous: https://georgiacommons.org/code/21-2-371.md
next: https://georgiacommons.org/code/21-2-373.md
index: https://georgiacommons.org/code/index.md
version: the only printed version
in_force: true
current_through: Including Acts of the 2025 Regular Session of the General Assembly
heading_path: ELECTIONS / ELECTIONS AND PRIMARIES GENERALLY / VOTING MACHINES AND VOTE RECORDERS GENERALLY / OPTICAL SCANNING VOTING SYSTEMS
---

# O.C.G.A. § 21-2-372. Ballot description; watermark required.

Ballots shall be of suitable design, size, and stock to permit processing by a ballot scanner and shall be printed in black ink on clear, white, or colored material. Other than ballots delivered electronically to qualified electors who are entitled to vote by absentee ballot under the federal Uniformed and Overseas Citizens Absentee Voting Act, 52 U.S.C. Section 20301, et seq., the ballots shall be printed on security paper that incorporates features which can be used to authenticate the ballot as an official ballot but which do not make the ballot identifiable to a particular elector, provided that at least one such feature is a visible watermark that identifies the ballot as an official Georgia ballot.

## History

Code 1981, § 21-2-372, enacted by Ga. L. 1998, p. 1231, § 37; Ga. L. 1999, p. 29, § 1; Ga. L. 2019, p. 7, § 22/HB 316; Ga. L. 2021, p. 14, § 23/SB 202; Ga. L. 2024, p. 758, § 1/HB 974, effective July 1, 2024.

## Amendments

The 2024 amendment, effective July 1, 2024, added “, provided that at least one such feature is a visible watermark that identifies the ballot as an official Georgia ballot” at the end of this Code section.