Most new voter registrations, about 67%, came from Georgia’s automatic voter registration program at driver’s license offices, according to the Election Assistance Commission.
Georgians have been signed up to vote when they fill out driver’s license forms since September 2016 unless they check a box to opt out. Before then, voters had to opt in.
Automatic registration significantly increased Georgia’s active voter registration rates, from 76% in 2016 to 95% in 2020, the federal data shows.
Other methods of registering to vote play a smaller role.
Online applications on the secretary of state’s website accounted for 16% of new registrations, and mailed or emailed applications made up 12%. The rest of registrations came from applications completed at county election offices, public assistance offices or disability offices.
Eight states had higher registration rates than Georgia, led by Maine, New Hampshire and Illinois.
However, there might be more unregistered voters in Georgia than indicated by the report from the Election Assistance Commission. The commission relied on census estimates from 2019 rather than updated figures from the 2020 census.
Though almost all eligible voters are registered, that doesn’t mean they turned out.
Over 5 million voters cast ballots in the 2020 presidential election, a turnout rate of 66% of the state’s citizen voting age population. The national average for turnout was 68%.