The Bulloch County Office of Elections and Registration was recognized by the state agency that oversees elections with a prestigious honor for their work in the 2020 elections.

The Georgia Association of Voter Registration and Elections Officials presented the Bulloch County Office with the Phoenix Award during their annual conference earlier this year.

The Phoenix Award is given to one county per region annually that provided exemplary performance during the 2020 elections. The nominations for the award are given by peers across the state in elections and registration offices. Bulloch County is in Region 11, which also includes Bryan, Chatham, Effingham, Jenkins, Liberty, Long, McIntosh and Screven Counties.

“The 2020 Election was a challenge for all elections offices, so Bulloch County is proud to accept this award for its dedicated employees and poll workers who persevered to hold a successful election,” says County Commission Chairman Roy Thompson.

“Just before the election, then Elections Supervisor Pat Lanier Jones suffered a tragic loss in her family, so she was out of the office several of the days leading up to the election,” said Hadley Campbell, chair of the Bulloch County Board of Elections. “Her team rallied together to help cover her responsibilities in addition to their own and, in my opinion, did an outstanding job. Pat has since retired from the elections position but remains an integral part of the Bulloch County family.”

The current elections supervisor, and former deputy registrar, Shontay Jones said that receiving this award is an honor, and she said she is proud of the hard work that the staff and volunteers put in during the election.

“Though we were challenged in many ways in 2020, we were still able to provide a positive voter experience through our customer service processes,” Jones said. “We were, and are, dedicated to providing an efficient and fair election process.”

Bulloch County was one of 14 counties across Georgia recognized as Phoenix Award recipients.