Who Is Brian Kemp?

 My VIPs for this week is Georgia Governor Brian Kemp and the legislators in Georgia. The legislators wrote and passed a voting reform bill and sent it to Governor Kemp for signature. According to Cortney Weil, the new law, SB 189, “would require all absentee ballots to be tabulated and the results reported on Election Night.” Imagine the audacity of all involved to expect voting results on election night! Weil explained as follows:

On Monday, Kemp signed SB 189, which makes several significant changes to Georgia’s election procedures. The bill removed some possible conflicts of interest between the secretary of state, the state Board of Elections, and those involved with counting ballots; compels homeless residents to list their county register’s office s their mailing address; prevents voters from using a P.O. box or private mailbox service s proof of residency; and requires individuals who have voted or registered to vote in another state or district to re-register in their original district before they will be allowed to cast a ballot there, WSBTV.com reported.

All absentee ballots that have been verified and accepted … by the Monday prior to the day of the primary, election, or runoff shall be tabulated and the results reported by no later than 8:00 P.M. on the day of such primary, election, or runoff or within one hour of the closing of all polls in such county, whichever occurs later.

This new rule is so noteworthy that Jeremiah Poff of the Washington Examiner claimed that it “will do wonders for election integrity in the Peach State” and that “every state should pass” a measure like it. “Public confidence in elections is paramount to keeping civil order and facilitating transfers of power from one party to another. Counting votes in a timely and accurate manner is essential to keeping that confidence,” Poff wrote….

Some of the bill’s changes will not be implemented for months or even years to come, but most of them – including the new rules regarding absentee ballots – go into effect in July.

As in most of the actions performed by conservatives to strength the nation or to preserve voting integrity, many on the left criticized the new law. Fair Fight Action called it “a gift to MAGA election deniers” and claimed that it would embolden “right-wing activists in their efforts to kick Black and brown voters off the rolls.”

In addition, Andrea Young, executive director of the ACLU of Georgia, called the bill “a step back for voters’ rights and voting access.” She continued, “This bill will require already overburdened election workers to spend time processing unnecessary voter challenges.”