Georgia Election Day: Soon after polls close, Biden and Trump declared winners

The Georgia Presidential Preference Primary took place Tuesday, March 12.

Voting in the Georgia Presidential Preference Primary has been going for a few weeks with early voting kicking off on Feb. 19. President Joe Biden is expected to lead the ballot in the Democratic primary, while former President Donald Trump is expected to lead the field in the Republican primary. Trump's closest challenger, Nikki Haley, dropped out of the presidential race on March 6.

As Georgians hit the polls on Tuesday, the USA TODAY Network provided updates below.

Mark your calendars: Here is every date you need to know to vote in Georgia in 2024

Georgia elections: Important dates, how to register, and what to know ahead of 2024

Raffensperger declares PPP election a success, praises Georgia’s progress on election security efforts | 9 p.m. 

Georgia’s polls closed at 7 p.m., and the results are now beginning to roll in. At an 8:15 p.m. press conference, Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger applauded the success of the Georgia Registered Voter Information System, also known as GARViS. The new voter registration system was used across all 159 counties in Georgia for the first time during this election.

“I couldn't be more pleased with the results,” Raffensperger said. “We're looking forward to seeing [GARViS] utilized, not just for this year, for the May primary, for November, but for the next decade to come, because it's a system that you can actually continue to improve on.”

Raffensperger also emphasized the importance of building confidence in Georgia’s voter security throughout the election season.

“Election security has been my top concern from day one,” he said. “Since 2020, some of the things that we've improved on, I strongly believe in. Number one, we have photo ID for absentee voting. And by doing that we, I believe, have elevated the security and also the confidence in that process.”

As of 9 p.m. ET, Donald Trump was leading the Republican race with 1,178 delegates. He will need to reach 1,215 delegates to secure the GOP nomination.

Joe Biden declared the presumptive nominee for the Democratic Party | 7:30 p.m. 

The Georgia PPP election has handed Biden a victory in the Democratic primary, awarding the sitting president 108 delegates and pushing him across the finish line to a total of 1,972 delegates. The Democratic pick for president only needed to secure 1,968 delegates to win the nomination. Only 23 delegates have been awarded to other candidates in the Democratic race according to AP.

USA TODAY: Joe Biden clinches Democratic nomination with Georgia win

AP calls Georgia’s Democratic, Republican races | 7:15 p.m. 

According to the Associated Press, Biden has been declared the winner in Georgia’s Democratic race, securing 108 additional delegates. Trump has won the Georgia Republican nomination, and will be awarded another 59 delegates. After tonight’s elections in Georgia, Hawaii, Mississippi and Washington state, both candidates could have enough delegates to win their party’s nomination.

Athens voter plans to 'wait until November' | 6:15 p.m.

The vote was low all day at a neighborhood polling place in east Athens, but a little more active at a second site about 10 miles away.

By 4 p.m. a polling worker at a Clarke County park location in east Athens said they had more that 100 voters, which he estimated was about 10 people per hour.

A sporadic arrival of late voter showed a mix with about half saying they were voting for Trump and others for Biden. But one man who parked just feet away from the polling place said he came to play tennis.

"I'll wait until November to vote," he said. "I think a lot of people are doing the same thing."

—Wayne Ford, Athens Banner-Herald

Georgia statewide voter turnout reaches 11% | 5:50 p.m. 

At the last count, 750,000 Georgia voters had cast a ballot in Tuesday’s PPP election, constituting an 11% turnout overall, according to Gabe Sterling, the Chief Operating Officer for the Georgia Secretary of State’s office. In-person election day voting constituted less than half of the turnout, with voters increasingly turning to early and absentee voting instead.

Two polling places will be open until 7:20 p.m. tonight — twenty minutes after the rest of the polls will close — due to delays at those locations earlier in the day. The polling places are listed below:

• Cobb County: Worship With Wonders Church, 1887 Powder Springs Road SW, Marietta, GA 30064

• Gwinnett County: Beaver Ridge Elementary School, 1978 Beaver Ruin Road, Norcross, GA 30071

Officials call for hand count of special election runoff for District 125 | 5:45 p.m.

Due to an early morning error in uploading the ballot for the special election runoff for state House of Representatives – District 125, Columbia County officials are requesting the Columbia County Board of Elections do a hand count of the ballots before certifying the election results, regardless of the outcome, according to a news release.

Board of Elections officials said emergency ballots were in place and they were counted.

— Alexandra Koch, The Augusta Chronicle

Augusta seeing very low turnout | 4:05 p.m.

Election Day has only a few hours left and Augusta-Richmond County joins many other Georgia counties seeing very low voter turnout.

Richmond County Board of Elections Director Travis Doss reported that, as of 3:30 p.m., they have seen just under 6% so far. He also indicated there have been no issues or problems so far.

Poll Officer Bonita Wright confirmed similar figures at First Baptist Church. She said they have had about 150 people come in from a precinct of about 4,000, but reminded the public that it is still important to vote no matter what.

Poll Officer Caroline Yort shared similar sentiments at Warren Road Community Center, saying the turnout has been slow, and whatever your vote is, it's a chance to do your civic duty.

—Miguel Legoas, The Augusta Chronicle

Raffensperger: GARViS program rollout a success | 2:50 p.m. 

The first statewide test for GARViS, or the Georgia Registered Voter Information System, has passed with flying colors according to Georgia Secretary of state Brad Raffensperger.

“We put GARViS in place over a year ago,” Raffensperger said at a 2:30 p.m. press briefing. “Now it's all 159 counties, and it’s working as we thought it would, smoothly. It’s really just been flawless, and we really are getting a lot of value out of it for the voters of Georgia. It really helps our election officials also.”

Aside from a few isolated issues, voting has been going smoothly across the state, he added. Raffensperger estimated that there would be roughly 9% turnout by the time the polls close tonight.

Turnout low in Athens area during lunch hour | 2:30 p.m.

During the lunch hour, there were less than a dozen people showing up to vote in Oconee County, a bedroom community of Athens.

Of those who shared their vote, all were voting for Trump.  Three people would not reveal their choice. About one-third of the Republican voters said immigration played an important role on their decision.

Last month, 22-year-old Athens nursing student Laken Riley was bludgeoned to death, allegedly by Jose Antonio Ibarra, 26, an undocumented Venezuelan man living in Athens.

— Wayne Ford, Athens Banner-Herald

Low voter turnout continues in Savannah | 1:45 p.m.

Chatham County Board of Elections Supervisor Billy Wooten said turnout just past midday has been "very small," with 1605 votes cast so far. There have been no major issues countywide, Wooten said.

—Evan Lasseter, Savannah Morning News

Why people are at the polls in Augusta | 1:30 p.m.

Augusta voters and poll workers shared Tuesday afternoon what brought them to out to the polls.

Christopher Yount, who was working at the Julian Smith Casino voting location, said it's always been a family tradition.

"Growing up, my parents were both precinct managers back in the late 80s, early 90s," said Yount, who was born and raised in Augusta. "So I've always kind of been somewhat involved, with family. Even back in high school I helped clean the old metal machines, helped load equipment and was a runner on election night – so I've always been somewhat involved for the past 25 years."

Betty Thomas, who voted at the Julian Smith Casino location, said she came out to the polls because she believes it is an important part of America's democracy.

"It's important because our democracy is at stake," Thomas said. "I just feel like it's up to every individual to come out and vote because everyone has that right. We can't speak on anything if we don't come out and vote."

— Alexandra Koch, The Augusta Chronicle

Augusta polls report low turnout | 1:15 p.m.

Augusta polling locations Tuesday morning said turnout was lower than expected.

Christopher Yount, who was working at the Julian Smith Casino, said they saw about 45 voters, as of 11 a.m.

"It's been slow, trickling in," Yount said. "There could be a little rush at lunchtime. Typically, at this location, we get a good morning rush, a good lunch rush and a good afternoon rush and the morning rush was very thin."

Susan Wyatt, who was working at the Salvation Army Kroc Center on Broad Street, said they had only seen five voters, as of 11 a.m.

"It's not been too bad, a little bit slow," Wyatt said. "Hopefully we will pick up around around lunch and then when everybody gets off work."

— Alexandra Koch, The Augusta Chronicle

Short wait times, minor voting issues reported | 11:10 a.m.

Wait times at polls across Georgia are approximately zero minutes, according to Gabe Sterling, the Chief Operating Officer for the Georgia Secretary of State’s office. As of 10:20 a.m., about 1% of the state’s voter population had cast their ballots on election day, which can likely be attributed to a rise in early and absentee voting, as well as low enthusiasm about the presidential primary.

“Since there's nobody competing specifically other than former President Trump and President Biden right now in either one of the parties, we're not seeing a gigantic turnout,” Sterling said at a 10:30 a.m. press conference. “But people still can make their voices heard.”

Gwinnett County, Charlton County, Screven County, Columbia County and Cobb County all reported minor issues at polling places, including paper jams, technical problems with voting machines and delayed opening times.

Interestingly, Sterling said voter turnout is steadily increasing throughout the day, a stark contrast with usual voting patterns.

“Normally, you see a real big spike at seven, at the seven o'clock hour it goes down and kind of evens out,” Sterling said. “[Today] it’s trending higher in the 10 o’clock hour, which is not a normal distribution.”

Savannah polls show light turnout | 10:10 a.m.

One Savannah polling location at Fellowship of Love Community Church had a slow morning Tuesday. As of 9:30 a.m., 13 voters had been through the polls. Savannah Morning News reporters saw one voter within an hour between 8:30 a.m. and 9:30 a.m. Poll manager Debra Moore said one voter was in line when the polls opened at 7:00 a.m. this morning.

James Matthews was one of the voters at Fellowship of Love's polling place. Matthews said his voting experience was quick and easy. It was the first primary he voted in.

"I think it was important to show this year, period," Matthews said.

—Evan Lasseter, Savannah Morning News

It was also a slow morning at First Presbyterian Church on Washington Ave, which is one of the city's polling locations with the most registered voters. The location had about 16 voters at 8:30 a.m., just over an hour after the polls opened.

—Richard Burkhart, Savannah Morning News

Election Day in Georgia is underway | 8 a.m. 

President Joe Biden is currently the frontrunner in the Democratic race with 1,872 delegates nationwide. He will need a total of 1,968 delegates to win the nomination.

Former President Donald Trump is leading his party’s race with 1,078 delegates. He will need to reach 1,215 delegates to secure the Republican nomination.

Polls open across Georgia at 7 a.m.

The March 12 Election Day officially begins at 7 a.m. Tuesday, when polls open across the state. Polls are open from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m.

To find your polling place, visit the Georgia Secretary of State's "My Voter Page" where you also check registration.

If you are voting in person you must bring a valid photo ID, which can include a passport, driver's license or a special free voter ID card issued at any county Board of Registrar's Office.

What is the Georgia Presidential Preference Primary?

The Georgia PPP is where voters from a particular party choose which candidate they want to represent their party. Voters do not choose the nominee directly, but they help allocate delegates who will choose a nominee.

Voting slow during lunch hour in Oconee County, a bedroom community of Athens and strong Republican county.

From Noon to about 1 today, only about a dozen people showed up at a polling place in Watkinsville. Everyone who would share their thoughts was voting Republican. Three wouldn't disclose their vote. At least a third of the Republican voters said immigration does have an impact on their vote.

This article originally appeared on Savannah Morning News: Election Day in Georgia: March 12 primary live updates