Seminole County Vote Discrepancy Flips Georgia House Seat
A missing memory card containing 388 ballots reversed the lead in House District 154, threatening Democratic control of the state legislature.
By Leila Reynolds ·
The balance of power in the Georgia House of Representatives hinges on a single county's data entry error. Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger launched a formal investigation on Sunday after Seminole County officials discovered a memory card holding 388 Election Day votes that had not been uploaded to the state tabulation system.
The county Board of Elections found the discrepancy while reconciling voter check-in numbers against cast ballots. Before the missing data was accounted for, Democrat Harry James held a 58-vote lead. The inclusion of the 388 ballots shifted the unofficial tally, placing Republican incumbent Gerald Greene ahead by 262 votes. State records updated on Saturday listed Greene with 10,193 votes and James with 9,932.
Raffensperger stated that the election safeguards worked as intended to identify the gap. The inquiry will determine how the card was overlooked and if standard procedures were followed. Greene told the Atlanta Journal-Constitution he was in disbelief but hopeful the margin would survive the certification process. County officials are required to finalize the results by Monday.
The outcome determines which party controls the 180-seat chamber. Democrats currently project a 93-seat majority, their first in 22 years. If Greene's lead is certified, Democrats drop to 92 seats, retaining a slim majority over the 91 needed for control. A separate contest in District 151 remains undecided and will proceed to a December 1 runoff.
