This NPR investigation with WABE and Georgia Public Broadcasting addresses barriers to voting via drop box.  In 2021, the Georgia legislature passed Senate Bill 202.  The new law restricted access to drop boxes in the counties most reliant on them.  It limited drop boxes to one per 100,000 voters.  Subsequently, a quarter of Georgia voters experienced increased travel time to a drop box.  This shift was especially visible in urban and suburban centers like Atlanta, where more than half the voters who cast their ballots via drop box in the 2020 general election resided.  These counties also have the highest number of voters of color and Democrats. 

“While it’s too early to measure the law’s impact on turnout, experts say even small changes to voter behavior and turnout can sway election outcomes and erode trust in the voting system, especially in a politically divided state like Georgia with a history of discriminatory voting practices that disproportionately impact people of color.”