With six months remaining until Georgia’s midterm elections, state election officials are facing a logistical crisis of their own making. The source of the turmoil is not a cyberattack or a shortage of ballots, but a legislative ban on QR codes—a move driven by persistent conspiracy theories rather than evidence of security flaws.
The Georgia state legislature passed a bill in 2024 prohibiting the use of Quick Response (QR) codes to tabulate votes, citing concerns over election integrity. However, lawmakers failed to approve a replacement system or provide the necessary funding and timeline for implementation. As a result, county election directors are left without clear instructions on how to count votes, creating uncertainty that threatens the smooth administration of the upcoming election.
The Origin of the Controversy
The push to eliminate QR codes stems largely from the efforts of Garland Favorito, a prominent figure in the election denial movement. Favorito has spent years promoting baseless claims that electronic voting machines, specifically those manufactured by Dominion, were rigged to alter election outcomes.
In 2019, Georgia invested $107 million in a new voting system. This system allowed voters to make selections on touchscreens, which then printed a paper ballot containing two elements:
1. Human-readable text: A clear summary of the voter’s choices.
2. A QR code: A digital encoding of the same information, used by tabulators to count votes quickly and accurately.
Favorito argued that because humans cannot read the digital data within a QR code, voters had no way to verify that the code matched their printed selections. He claimed this vulnerability allowed for widespread fraud, particularly in the 2020 election. Despite numerous audits and investigations finding no evidence of such manipulation, the narrative gained traction. By 2024, political pressure resulted in the legislative ban.
“It’s a complete red herring, but it’s being used to symbolize a fear of election fraud,” explains Sara Tindall Ghazal, a member of Georgia’s State Election Board. “The folks who are desperate to remove the QR codes think that our elections are vulnerable, that they’re being hacked or being rigged.”
Why the Ban Matters (And Why Experts Disagree)
From a technical standpoint, the ban addresses a non-issue. Ben Adida, executive director of the nonpartisan nonprofit VotingWorks, notes that Georgia already conducts post-election audits based on the human-readable text on the ballots. The QR codes are merely a secondary mechanism for speed; they are not the primary source of truth for the official count.
- Security: Experts state there is no evidence QR codes have been used to rig elections.
- Auditability: The paper trail remains intact and verifiable by humans.
- Efficiency: QR codes allow for rapid tabulation, reducing wait times and errors associated with manual counting.
Despite this, Favorito maintains that rigging is a “distinct possibility,” dismissing audit results. His broader agenda extends beyond QR codes; he advocates for the complete removal of voting machines in favor of manual, hand-counted ballots by volunteers and students.
The Practical Nightmare for Officials
The legislative ban has created a vacuum that election officials are struggling to fill. The law set a July 1, 2026 deadline to end QR code usage, but with the midterms approaching, no alternative system is in place.
Key challenges include:
- Lack of Clarity: Anne Dover, Director of Elections in Cherokee County, admitted to WIRED, “Unfortunately, we do not have an answer to this question.” Officials are unsure whether new rules will be enacted or how to proceed.
- Legal Risks: Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger’s office proposed a temporary workaround: using QR codes for immediate night-of results but relying on optical-character-recognition (OCR) scanning for the official legal count. However, election experts warn this hybrid approach may violate state law.
- Operational Impossibility: Favorito’s suggestion to switch to manual counting is widely regarded as unworkable. Deidre Holden, Director of Elections in Paulding County, emphasized the difficulty: “Hand counting is serious… We already struggle to find committed poll workers, and they are paid.” Relying on unpaid volunteers to count millions of ballots accurately and securely is a logistical hurdle that most counties cannot clear.
A Political Standoff
The crisis reflects a broader tension between political ideology and administrative reality. While former President Donald Trump signed an executive order in March 2025 urging a nationwide ban on QR code vote counting, state legislators have failed to act on the replacement mechanism.
Governor Brian Kemp has declined to comment on whether he will call a special legislative session to resolve the impasse. Meanwhile, election directors remain frustrated by the lack of direction.
“We are at the mercy of the legislators,” said Dover. “This is not our problem to solve. The legislators created this problem.”
Conclusion
Georgia’s election infrastructure is now caught in a political crossfire. The ban on QR codes, driven by unfounded conspiracy theories rather than security necessities, has stripped election officials of a reliable, efficient tool without offering a viable alternative. As the midterms approach, the state faces the risk of delayed results, legal challenges, and public confusion—all stemming from a policy decision that prioritizes symbolic politics over practical governance.
