Hawks' arena to become voting station for upcoming election

The Atlanta Hawks will convert State Farm Arena into a voting station for Fulton County residents in the Aug. 11 Georgia general primary runoff election, the team announced.

In what will be the state's largest polling station, the venue will allow tens of thousands of constituents to vote while observing COVID-19 social distancing requirements. Early balloting begins July 20.

"When our ownership group purchased the Hawks and State Farm Arena five years ago, we were clear that we felt it was our responsibility to make sure the organization was an important civic asset to the city of Atlanta," Hawks principal owner Tony Ressler said. "Utilizing State Farm Arena and our incredible staff to make the arena an accessible and vital polling site in an important election year is a fulfillment on that promise."

The Hawks aren't included in the NBA's planned 22-team return in Florida next month. It was reported last Friday that some eliminated teams may be interested in holding their own season-ending training camps.