ATLANTA, Ga. (Atlanta News First) - As the 2026 election season ramps up, a new statewide poll shows Georgia voters have more confidence in the electoral process—leading state officials and bipartisan leaders to argue against further changes to voting laws.

A recently released survey by the national polling firm Cygnal shows trust in Georgia’s elections has increased significantly since the contentious 2020 presidential race.

The data is now being used by the Election Defense Project, a bipartisan group of former and current elected officials, to push back against renewed calls for sweeping election law changes.

“I don’t care about 2020,” said John Fervier, a Republican and the chairman of the State Election Board. “We have good, fair, honest, legitimate elections now.”

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Fervier said his opinion is based on what he witnessed during visits to election offices across Georgia in 2023 and 2024. He credits post-2020 election laws for improving voter access, reducing wait times and streamlining processes.

Sitting beside him was former Atlanta Mayor Shirley Franklin, a Democrat, who echoed Fervier’s support for Georgia’s current election system.

“Making changes just to make changes is a waste of time,” Franklin said, warning lawmakers not to undermine voter confidence by pursuing unpopular measures.

The poll shows that most Georgia voters oppose proposed changes being considered under the Gold Dome, such as rolling back early voting days or replacing electronic machines with hand-marked paper ballots.

Franklin said elected officials should reflect the will of the voters, not override it.

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“If the people say they’re satisfied, lawmakers should listen and leave it alone,” she said.

Still, election officials acknowledge that some updates will be necessary.

Gabriel Sterling, chief operating officer for the Georgia Secretary of State’s Office, said the General Assembly will need to revisit a law passed last session banning QR codes on ballots. That change requires a costly upgrade to the state’s voting machines so they can read the text directly from ballots, a process that has not yet been funded.

“The way the law is currently written, we can’t read any ballots,” said Sterling.

Without additional funding, Sterling warned, Georgia could face technical setbacks during future elections.

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