Any year ending with an even number equals a busy voting calendar in Baldwin County and the rest of Georgia.
2026 is no exception, and it all starts on Monday, when early voting begins at the new Baldwin County Annex on North Columbia Street. The hours are 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m., Monday through Friday. There will be two “Saturday voting days” leading up to the May 19 primary. Those are May 2 and May 9, respectively. The Saturday voting hours are slightly different – 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.
May 8, meanwhile, is the last day to request an absentee ballot, which can be accomplished by calling the Board of Elections Office at 478-445-4526, visiting the Georgia Secretary of State's website or by picking one up at the Board of Elections office, which is located in the back left corner of the ground floor of the new annex.
Meanwhile, all precincts will open at 7 a.m. on Tuesday, May 19, and remain open through 7 p.m. Super procrastinators must be in line by 7 p.m. on election day in order to cast a ballot. All absentee ballots also must be turned in by 7 p.m. on election day. Election Supervisor Eric Unold encourages voters to visit the My Voter Page at sos.ga.gov, which is a relative wealth of information. After entering some basic information, voters can view each of the different sample ballots: Democratic, Republican and Non-Partisan.
“The ballot is really long this year, and (the My Voter Page) is the best way to do the homework,” Unold said. “Voters are actually allowed to take a printed version of a sample ballot into the voting booth.
You're not allowed to use your phone, but you can have a (printed version of a) sample ballot with you.”
The primary ballot will appear in the following order: Senate, Governor, Lieutenant Governor, Secretary of State, Attorney General, Commissioner of Agriculture, Commission of Insurance, State School Superintendent, Commissioner of Labor, Public Service Commissioner (District 3 and District 5), United States House of Representatives, State House of Representatives, County Commissioner (District 3, District 4 and District 5), “party questions,” Supreme Court, Court of Appeals Judge and State Court Judge.
In primary elections, of course, voters must choose a specific ballot, and “cross voting” is not allowed. In other words, if you're backing a Republican candidate for governor but you're also backing a Democratic candidate in the State House of Representatives race, you can't vote for both.