Sweeping changes to Georgia elections signed into law by Gov. Kemp amid outcry

ATLANTA — Gov. Brian Kemp quickly signed a vast rewrite of Georgia’s election rules into law Thursday, imposing voter ID requirements, limiting drop boxes and allowing state takeovers of local elections after last year’s close presidential race.

Kemp finalized the bill just over an hour after it cleared the General Assembly, leaving no doubt about its fate amid public pressure against voting restrictions.

Republican lawmakers pushed the legislation through both the House and Senate over the objections of Democratic lawmakers. The legislation passed along party lines in both chambers, with votes of 34-20 in the Senate and 100-75 in the House.

Protesters outside the Capitol said the bill would disenfranchise voters, calling it “Jim Crow 2.0.” Supporters of the measure, Senate Bill 202, argued it would protect election integrity.

Here’s more video from @TWareStevens, showing Rep. Cannon knocking on the door to the Governor’s office.

“I’mma tell you one more time to step back,” the officer says. #gapol

Full video: https://t.co/2lUgKOxbZt pic.twitter.com/HKuKsBgg6n

— stephen fowler (@stphnfwlr) March 25, 2021

“Significant reforms to our state elections were needed. There’s no doubt there were many alarming issued with how the election was handled, and those problems really led to a crisis of confidence in the ballot box here in Georgia,” Kemp said after signing the bill.

The elections overhaul in a state with a history of voting rights struggles came after the first victory by Democrat in a presidential election since 1992. Then in January, Democrats won two runoffs for the U.S. Senate, giving them the majority.

Opponents of the bill said it would create obstacles for voting, especially on absentee ballots and in runoffs.

Absentee voters would be required to submit driver’s license numbers or other documentation under a new process for checking their identity, replacing signature matching processes. Over 200,000 Georgia voters lack a driver’s license or state ID number, meaning they would need to submit additional proof of their identities.

The new law would:
• Impose new ID requirements for absentee ballots
• Make it easier for state officials to take over local elections boards
• Criminalize efforts to approach voters in line, even to give them food or water
• Limit ballot drop box use https://t.co/NdajtJWVPH

— Axios (@axios) March 25, 2021

In addition, there would as little as one week of early voting before runoffs, down from the current three-week early voting period. The bill calls for runoffs to be held four weeks after general elections, leaving little time for early voting.

“It is unbelievable that there are still some people trying to stop people from voting today. You are changing the rules, cutting the voting hours, and making it more difficult for people to vote,” said state Rep. Erica Thomas, a Democrat from Austell. “Too many people fought, bled and died for our right to vote.”

Republican lawmakers said the measure would increase trust in election outcomes following unsubstantiated claims of voter fraud. Recounts both by hand and machine showed that Democrat Joe Biden defeated Republican Donald Trump by about 12,000 votes.

“Our goal is to ensure that voters in Georgia have confidence in the elections process,” said state Sen. Max Burns, a Republican from Sylvania. “This is a solid step in the right direction to provide voter integrity in Georgia.”

Many Republican state legislators expressed sympathy for suspicions about the presidential race, though election officials say there’s no evidence of widespread fraud. Republican Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger has said the November election was successful and accurate.

As Georgia lawmakers debated the bill, Biden criticized attempts by Republicans-led state legislatures across the country seeking to create new voting restrictions. He’s backing a far-reaching federal voting rights bill pending in the U.S. Senate.

“What I’m worried about is how un-American this whole initiative is,” Biden said. “It’s sick.”

The 95-page Georgia elections bill covers many aspects of voting access, ballot counting, election oversight and runoffs.

Besides requiring ID numbers to vote absentee, the bill would also require ballot drop boxes to be located inside early-voting locations, limiting their usefulness. Drop boxes wouldn’t be available to voters in the last four days of an election, when it’s often too late to mail them in time.

Weekend voting before general elections would be expanded, with mandatory voting hours on two Saturdays statewide. Counties would retain the option to allow early voting on two Sundays. But early voting before runoffs would be reduced to a minimum of just one week before Election Day.

The bill also would allow the State Election Board to take over county election boards that it deems need intervention. Skeptics say that would allow Republican officials to decide which ballots count in majority Democratic areas, such as Fulton County.

In addition, the legislation sets a deadline to request absentee ballots 11 days before Election Day and disqualifies provisional ballots cast in the wrong precinct. Distributing food or drinks to voters waiting in line would be prohibited.

“One of the things we looked at is a system that’s broke,” said state Rep. Alan Powell, a Republican from Hartwell. “We have a system that needs to be revamped.”

Protesters said they opposed voting restrictions driven by Trump’s loss.

“I’m here because the work never ends,” said Marla Cureton, a Roswell activist. “It’s a reminder to Democrats around the country that this is going to be an ongoing fight.”

Representatives from both parties said the legislation is about political power in advance of 2022 election, which could include a rematch of the 2018 contest for governor. Kemp will face opposition, potentially from Democrat Stacey Abrams.

“This is a partisan power grab in response to the electoral defeat in the 2020 election cycle,” said state Rep. Carolyn Hugley, a Democrat from Columbus. “We will not stand idly by and let Jim Crow 2.0 roll back our new Georgia.”

State Rep. Barry Fleming, a Republican from Harlem, said the bill will fix issues in prior elections, but it will also be used as fodder for future political campaigns by Democrats seeking to motivate their voters.

“What we’re trying to do is address the problems in 2018 and 2020,” Fleming said. He urged representatives to vote in favor of the bill to “make voting better in Georgia, and also make voting in Georgia more accessible.”

The final version of the bill didn’t include a proposal to end no-excuse absentee voting, which has allowed any Georgia voter to cast an absentee ballot since 2005. Lawmakers backed off the effort to restrict absentee ballots to voters who are at least 65 years old, have a physical disability or are out of town. Over a quarter of the 5 million voters in November’s election used absentee ballots.

Voting rights organizations have said they will challenge the legislation in court.