Introduction

This report analyzes the adjudication process in Fulton County, Georgia, for the 2020 Presidential Election. It covers both the original count and the recount, highlighting the differences between the two. With various rumors circulating about the adjudication process, this report aims to provide clarity based on the data. There have been claims that as many as 100,000 ballots were adjudicated in Fulton County. Given the significance of such a number, this report investigates its accuracy.

Original Adjudications

The JSON export of the Fulton County database includes both the original and adjudicated ballot results. This file, a rare find in election analysis, contains comprehensive information about the election, including the results of each ballot. Notably, there are 374,467 missing ballot images from the original count, fueling various conspiracy theories about the adjudication process. However, the JSON file allows us to determine the exact number of ballots.

From the first machine count in Fulton County, Georgia, 5,158 ballots were adjudicated, which is 0.97% of all cast votes. By looking at the data files that list all 'modified' ballots, we can see that these ballots had issues like overvotes, undervotes, and write-ins. After reviewing a sample of these adjudicated ballots, I believe that the team of adjudicators made the correct decisions.

There are too many ballots to list here in a downloadable table format, but you can download the full list at Fulton MC1 Adjudications

Recount Adjudications

In the second machine count, I discovered 1,401 adjudicated ballots in Fulton County, Georgia. Similar to the original count, another 17,724 ballot images are missing from the available images. This means that 0.27% of the total cast votes were adjudicated.

There are too many ballots to list here in a downloadable table format, but you can download the full list at Fulton MC2 Adjudications

The difference in adjudicated ballots between the original count and the recount is primarily due to the recount focusing only on the presidential vote. A majority of the adjudicated ballots involved voters choosing a straight Democratic ticket but selecting multiple senatorial candidates, despite being allowed to vote for only one. With eight Democratic Senate candidates, many voters selected all eight, invalidating their vote for that contest. This issue also occurred with Republican Senate candidates, though less frequently, as there were only five candidates.