In addition to electing the first nation’s Black female governor and flipping the state’s House of Representatives to majority Democrat, Georgians also passed three new constitutional amendments.
The ballot measures involved property taxes, emergency services, and judicial elections. According to the unofficial results from the Georgia secretary of state’s office, all the measures have passed.
Below is a breakdown on what each new amendment means:
Constitutional Amendment 1
What the ballot said:
Increases the maximum qualifying acreage for assessment and taxation as bona fide conservation use property.
House Resolution 32 Ga. L. 2025, p. 1081
“Shall the Constitution of Georgia, for the purpose of protecting family farmland, be amended so as to increase the maximum acreage to qualify for assessment and taxation as a bona fide conservation use property from 2,000 acres to 4,000 acres?”
What the question meant:
Should the maximum amount of property a landowner can enroll in Georgia’s Conservation Use Valuation Assessment (CUVA) be increased from 2,000 acres to 4,000 acres?
What happens now that it passed:
The maximum amount of property a landowner can enroll in the state’s CUVA is now 4,000 acres.
Land enrolled in the CUVA program cannot be developed for 10 years and must be maintained for agricultural, forestry, or conservation use. In exchange, the land is taxed at 40% of its current-use value instead of its fair market value.
Increasing the amount of land that can qualify for CUVA allows more farmland to be preserved for agricultural, forestry, or conservation purposes. Critics say this could shift a larger portion of the property tax burden on to residential and commercial land owners.
Constitutional Amendment 2
What the ballot said:
Provides for the nonpartisan election of all probate court judges.
House Resolution 251 Ga. L. 2026, p. 1110
“Shall the Constitution of Georgia be amended so as to require that all probate court judges be elected in nonpartisan elections?”
What the question meant:
Should candidates for probate court judge be labeled with a political party like Democrat or Republican on the ballot?
What happens now that it’s passed:
Elections for probate court judges will now be nonpartisan.
Probate judges handle wills, estates, marriage licenses, and firearm carry permits, and appoint legal conservators. In some counties they hear traffic and misdemeanor cases. Some probate judges also serve as their county’s elections supervisor.
The majority of Georgia’s probate judges are already elected in nonpartisan elections, including all five counties in the Atlanta metro area. Supporters of this amendment say it would bring uniformity to probate courts across the state and strengthen confidence in what is supposed to be an impartial judiciary. Opponents argue that including party affiliations can be useful for voters who tend to have less information about judicial candidates but may tend to prefer one party over another.
Constitutional Amendment 3
What the ballot said:
Authorizes creation of Georgia Next Generation 9-1-1 Fund for 9-1-1 systems expansion, maintenance, and operation.
House Resolution 1243 Ga. L. 2026, p. 1109
“Shall the Constitution of Georgia be amended so as to authorize the General Assembly to dedicate certain existing revenues, including revenues reallocated by law, to a nonlapsing fund to be used exclusively for the expansion, maintenance, and operation of emergency 9-1-1 systems in this state?”
What the question meant:
Should the Georgia legislature be allowed to direct existing tax dollars into a new fund that can be used only for the expansion, maintenance, and operation of 911 systems? This would include transitioning the current system to Next Generation 911.
What happens now that it passed:
The state will now be able to create a new fund for 911 services.
The efficiency of the 911 system heavily impacts emergency services’ ability to respond quickly to incidents. According to the Georgia Emergency Communications Authority, the current system was designed for landline calls and is not always able to accurately pinpoint the location of mobile callers, which are estimated to make up over 80% of incoming 911 calls.
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