MACON, Ga. — Thousands of absentee ballots have already been mailed out, but the Macon-Bibb Board of Elections says for those planning on voting in person, extra safety measures will be in place to protect against COVID-19.
"Wear their masks; they can wear their gloves. We've gone the extra mile, and we have a stylus for them to vote with," said Elections Supervisor Jeanetta Watson.
Once doors open at the Board of Elections on Monday, Watson says the process may look a little different.
"We have the blue tape down on the floor, and most people will be familiar with those markings because a lot of the stores, that's what they use," Watson said.
Watson says there will also be an absentee ballot box for people to drop their ballot off instead of having to stand in line to vote. They're expecting this to be a popular option this election season.
"We sent out about 107,000, the Secretary of State did initially, and then we turned around and sent out about another 2,300 to 2,500 to those voters that are listed as inactive," she said.
She says all poll workers, including herself, will have masks on. They won't be shaking hands or hugging people, as hard as that may be.
"They know a lot of the voters, so I have to try to encourage them to not embrace, but do a nice fist bump or a nice hug to ourselves and smile at them instead of actually physically making contact," said Watson.
She says despite the pandemic, they're still ready to work.
"We trampling, trying to trample over these challenges along the way, and we're ready. We're ready for Monday," she said.
Watson says the deadline to request an absentee ballot by mail is June 5.
MORE ELECTION COVERAGE