new georgia voting law explained
The heavily populated county has been plagued by problems, including long lines, and it is often singled out by Republican officials. Copyright 2023 CBS Interactive Inc. All rights reserved. Mail your application to either your county elections office or to the Secretary of States office at First National Bank Building, 332 Minnesota St., Suite N201, Saint Paul, MN 55101. And there can only be one drop box for every 100,000 voters in a county. Credit card donations may be made throughour Donate page. If a voter goes to the wrong precinct in his or her county before 5 p.m., poll workers are supposed to direct that person to the correct precinct, rather than directing the voter to cast a provisional ballot. Mutual Fund and ETF data provided by Refinitiv Lipper. The new law makes it a misdemeanor to hand out any money or gifts, including, but not limited to, food and drink to anyone standing in line to vote. Previously in Georgia, a form of identification was required for voting in person but not for voting absentee by mail. Its Jim Crow in a suit and tie, writes Stacey Abrams, a voting rights advocate and the 2018 Democratic candidate for governor in Georgia. One attention-grabbing section prohibits the giving of any money or gifts, including, but not limited to, food and drink, to an electorwithin 25 feet of any voter standing in line to vote at any polling place. In effect, this means that it is now illegal in Georgia to provide food and water to people waiting in line to vote. Historically, both parties benefit from mail-in voting in non-pandemic conditions; restricting it, while clearly undemocratic, might not help Republicans too much in the 2022 midterms. (Michael Holahan/The Augusta Chronicle via AP, File), Connect with the definitive source for global and local news. There are counties people are saying we are taking something away with drop boxes. Elections superintendents must report the returns of verified and accepted absentee ballots by 5 p.m. the day following an election day. Although there was no evidence of widespread fraud in the last presidential election, many Republican voters have supported ex-President Donald Trump's unfounded allegations of voting irregularities. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. Brian Kemp makes numerous changes to how elections will be administered, including a new photo ID requirement for voting absentee by mail. The new law restricts buses and "other readily movable" facilities to emergency use only. It requires a county board of registrars or absentee ballot clerk to establish at least one drop box, but then limits additional drop boxes based on the number of active registered voters or early voting locations. In his statement, released on Friday, Mr Biden said: "Recount after recount and court case after court case upheld the integrity and outcome of a clearly free, fair, and secure democratic process. A candidate needs a majority more than 50 percent of the votes to win. If the voter does not have one, he or she can submit a photocopy of a different form of identification. It makes Georgia the second state to pass laws that restrict ballot access in the aftermath of the 2020 election. The high-stakes battle over US voting rights, LeBron James rights group launches new campaign, The 750,000 people you didnt know could vote, World reacts to long queues of voters in US, Doctors cannot believe Ralph Yarl survived shooting, Brother died saving birthday girl's life in US shooting, 'Someone must know': Questions remain in Dadeville, Realities dash hopes for Israel-Palestinian peace, Fighting hits Khartoum neighbourhoods - maps and images, How LinkedIn is changing and why some are not happy, Who didn't make the coronation guest list? Training provided by the political party, political body or candidate designating the poll watcher is a prerequisite for qualifying for or being appointed a poll watcher. Deciding that you're going to end voting at five o'clock when working people are just getting off work.". Correction, March 26: An earlier version of this article misstated the manner in which SB202 applies Georgias voter ID law to mail-in ballot applications. Georgia Gov. Georgia had already outlawed campaigns or other groups from distributing or displaying any campaign material within 150 feet of a polling place or within 25 feet of any voters standing in line for a polling site, and the new law now bans giving voters any gifts, "including but not limited to, food and drink.". The new law makes it a misdemeanor to hand out any money or gifts, including, but not limited to, food and drink to anyone standing in line to vote. SB 202 imposes voter identification requirements for absentee ballots, empowers state officials to take over local elections boards, limits the use of ballot drop boxes and makes it a crime to approach voters in line to give them food and water. The Brennan Center, a nonpartisan institute focused on voting rights, has been tracking the spread of new voting restrictions across the country. There is a reason that a 2019 survey of political scientists found that the GOPs closest peers abroad are not normal center-right parties, like Canadas CPC or Germanys CDU, but rather extreme anti-democratic parties like Turkeys AKP or Polands PiS. The party takes advantage of our federalized electoral system to tilt elections at the local level, creating pockets of electoral unfairness in an otherwise free system, giving them a significant leg up. A candidate needs a majority more than 50 percent of the votes to win. Under the new law, absentee ballots cannot be requested earlier than 78 days or less than 11 days ahead of a general election or the runoff for that election. Chinese embassy spox says US trying to 'smear China's image' with latest Justice Department charges, Democrat Sen. Bob Menendez sets up defense fund amid criminal probe into gifts to his wife: report, Wisconsin lawmakers push for bill to increase penalties for carjacking, Texas lawsuit challenging Biden student loan rule transferred to more liberal court. Georgia just made it a crime to hand a waiting voter a bottle of water. Cloud, is charged with two felonies, accused of registering to The new law allows the Georgia attorney general to set up a hotline for voters to file complaints and allegations of voter intimidation or illegal activity. Stacey Abrams on voting rights, her next move, The Associated Press sat down this week with Stacey Abrams, the Democratic candidate for governor in 2018 and a leading voice on ballot access, to talk about the inequity of sweeping, new state law on Georgia voting. Data from the National Conference of State Legislatures shows Republicans have legislative control in 30 states and unified control - including the governorship - in 23 states, far more than Democrats. Republicans had proposed at one time to limit early voting on weekends, a time when many Black churches conduct souls to the polls efforts to take congregants to vote. For example, Fulton County says it will go down from 38 to eight drop boxes. As a result, the ID requirement could help election officials process ballots more efficiently. Georgia law doesnt make it a crime to bring water (yourself), butdoesmake it a crime to bring watertosomeone standing in line.. Brian Kemp on Thursday night, is a small-d democrats nightmare. State government officials will not be able to send unsolicited ballot request forms to voters. Georgia only had three weeks before runoffs until 2013, when a federal judge ordered a longer gap to give military and overseas voters more time to return ballots. SB 202 imposes voter identification requirements for absentee ballots, empowers state officials to take over local elections boards, limits the use of ballot drop boxes and makes it a crime to approach voters in line to give them food and water. Leading up to the 2020 election runoffs, True the Vote, a conservative group, challenged the eligibility of 360,000 voters, but courts blocked the effort. Now early voting would begin as soon as possible but no later than the second Monday before the election, possibly leaving as little as five weekdays and no weekend days of early voting. Certain provisions will go into effect on July1: The law expands in-person early voting for general elections, according to The AJC. Fox News Flash top headlines are here. Under the new law, absentee ballots cannot be requested earlier than 78 days or less than 11 days ahead of a general election or the runoff for that election. This surge in voting restrictions is clearly motivated by Trumps claims of widespread voter fraud in the 2020 elections. But the new law goes further than the prior law by defining gifts to include food and drink to people waiting in long lines, Levitt said. The Democrats say it is an attempt to target social and ethnic groups who are more likely to vote for them, reducing the surge in votes from those groups in the last election. Video, 00:04:50. Please enter a valid email and try again. Georgias new voting law, signed by Republican Gov. Kemp signs controversial voting bill, lawmaker arrested. Here's what you need to know about Senate Bill 202: Gov. Kemp, April 3:The ones that have complained about the water issue are factually wrong, including the president. The law passed the Georgia House on Thursday morning by a party-line vote of 100 to 75, and was approved by the Senate in the evening on a 34-to-20 vote before being signed by Gov. The New Georgia Project, Black Voters Matter and Rise Inc. say the law violates the First and 14th Amendments of the U.S. Constitution, as well as parts of the federal Voting Rights Act that say states cannot restrict Black voter participation. Are people banned from giving water to voters? Kempmisleadingly suggested the new law wouldnt reduce the number of drop boxes available for absentee voters to drop off their ballots. After 5 p.m., a voter arriving at the wrong polling site may cast a provisional ballot if unable to reach correct precinct before polls close. It would limit the number of drop boxes compared with what elections officials provided in the 2020 election. The law allows counties to set voting hours anywhere between 7am and 7pm, as was the case previously. Long waits are more common in areas with a larger black population, often due to fewer polling stations and other barriers to voting. Republicans passed and signed the 98-page voting law last week following the first Democratic victories in presidential and Senate elections in Georgia in a generation. Corporations spoke out against the law, and Major League Baseball decided to move its 2021 All-Star Game out of Atlanta because of it. Now they can request them 78 days before an election. In Iowa, the G.O.P. Under ranked choice voting rules, its not enough to just get the most votes. The attorney general is able to review each allegation to determine if it should be investigated or prosecuted. Democratic state Senate Minority Leader Gloria Butler slammed the proposal Thursday before the bill was signed into law, saying: They want to make it a crime to bring Grandma some water while shes waiting in line.. Polling places would be able to, but not required to, set up self-serve water dispensers for voters. With the new procedures comes a shorter timeline for counties to certify results: six days, rather than 10. 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