What Difference Did Election Reform Have in Georgia in 2022?

The State of Georgia reformed its election law in 2021. Democrats and other leftists went crazy and claimed that the new law would suppress voting. The Coca-Cola Company and Major League Baseball were two of the corporations that acted outrageously.

According to Fred Lucas at The Daily Signal, the Honest Elections Project now wants to hold the two corporations responsible and has started a five-figure ad campaign targeting them. The election integrity group claims that the lies were proven by the elections in November. 

The organization bought a full-page ad in The Atlanta Journal-Constitution calling for Coca-Cola to issue an apology.

The ad notes that Coke said the Georgia law would deter voting, even though Georgia had record early and absentee voting for the 2022 midterm elections. The ad concludes: “Coca-Cola should apologize for putting woke politics over safe and secure elections.”

It also paid for a billboard truck to drive around Major League Baseball’s Winter Meetings this week in San Diego. The billboard said, “Apologize. MLB lied about Georgia’s election law and moved the All-Star game,” and “MLB should apologize to Georgia for its $100 million lie.”

Republican Georgia Governor Brian Kemp signed legislation in 2021 that “extended voter ID requirements to absentee balloting, established guidelines for ballot drop boxes, aimed to shorten lines at polling places, and gave the State Election Board more oversight over election administration in the counties.

The strengthening of the laws did not suppress voting. The voter turn out in the primary election was “about four times higher than in 2018, the last non-presidential year.” In the 2022 general election, “Early voting hit a record high” with voting being lower on Election Day. However, the “overall turnout was similar to the 2018 election, according to [the Atlanta Journal-Constitution].

Who Is Mark Robinson?

             Mark Robinson is the first black lieutenant governor of North Carolina. Not only is Robinson black, but he is also a conservative Republican lieutenant governor. He recently spoke during a hearing of the House Judiciary Committee. Robinson gave some of his personal history and then spoke on the assigned topic for his visit – the “evolving landscape of voter discrimination.” 

            Robinson first said that he is “very proud of the history in this nation of my people” and spoke about the numerous ways that Blacks have been mistreated. He spoke of all the “sacrifices of our ancestors” that made it possible for him to be the lieutenant governor of his state, for a black man to sit in the White House for two terms, and “for millions of us to be leaders in business, athletics, government, and culture add up to an incredible story of victory.”

But today, we hear Georgia law being compared to Jim Crow, that black voices are being silenced and that black voices are being kept out.

How? By bullets? By bombs? By nooses? No, by requiring a free ID to secure the vote. Let me say that again: by requiring a free ID to secure the vote. How absolutely preposterous.

Am I to believe that black Americans who have overcome the atrocities of slavery, who were victorious in the civil rights movement, and now sit in the highest levels of this government could not figure out how to get a free ID to secure their votes? That they need to be coddled by politicians because they don’t think we can figure out how to make our voices heard?

Are you kidding me? The notion that people must be protected from a free ID to secure their votes is not just insane – it is insulting.

And let me tell you something about this. This doesn’t have anything to do with justice, this has everything to do with power.

            Robinson continued by explaining why the Georgia ID law is all about power. He stated that HR 1 “is designed to keep one party in power and ensure they stay there indefinitely.” He continued by explaining that they plan to stay in power by “taking away the rights of states given by the Constitution to govern their own elections, to mandate a partisan wish list that comes down from that federal government.” The items in the bill include “using government dollars to fund campaigns in order to give an advantage to one party; mandating that felons are allowed to vote, including illegal immigrants on voter rolls; and of course, trying to ban states from having voter ID.”

The last thing I’ll say is this, many people know that I’m a strong proponent of the Second Amendment, and I always will be. I believe that the right to keep and bear arms should always be available to law-abiding citizens, but the first line of defense in maintaining the integrity of the Second Amendment is having an ID to show when requiring that ID when you purchase that firearm.

In the same way, I believe that voter ID is our first line of defense for protecting the integrity of the right to vote. And that’s what this should be about. It should be about integrity, not power. Thank you.

            I have been a fan of Robinson for several years. He first came on the national scene a few years ago when he stood up at a local meeting of some kind and blasted the local politicians for trying to take Second Amendment rights away from law-abiding citizens. I liked his courage, and I liked his delivery. I am grateful to know that he holds a leadership position in his state. I also consider him to be a genius to link the ID requirements to buy a gun to the ID requirement for voting. If we are not willing to mail guns out to everybody, why should we mail ballots out to everybody? Voting integrity is every bit as important as knowing who is buying the guns.

Does the New Georgia Election Law Bring Back “Jim Crow Laws”?

             Democrats, liberals, and progressives use the “race card” whenever they cannot win with ideas and policies, and President Joe Biden is no different. In discussing the latest election reform bill in Georgia, he claimed that the Jim Crow laws of the “Old South” were returning. Nothing can be further from the truth.

            According to Hans von Spakovsky at The Daily Signal, the claims of Jim Crow laws are insulting and have to do with two of the provisions of the bill. He wrote that critics of the bill apparently did not actually read what the bill said. If they did, they do not “understand that similar provisions already exist in federal law.” 

            In an effort to educate the critics, von Spakovsky discussed the two provisions. The first one is a requirement to provide an ID to receive an absentee ballot. There is already a law in Georgia – in place since 2008 presidential election – with the requirement of showing “a government-issued photo ID” to vote in person.

When a federal judge threw out the lawsuit against the law in 2007 (amid similar “Jim Crow” comparisons), he specifically noted that in two years of litigation, the challengers could not produce a single resident of the state who would be unable to vote because of the new ID requirement.

Georgia provides a free photo ID to anyone who doesn’t already have one. We have more than a decade’s worth of Georgia’s turnout data in election after election that graphically shows that the ID provision does not prevent anyone—including minorities—from voting. Simply extending the ID requirement to absentee ballots is a much-needed, commonsense reform that voters support.

            Von Spakovsky continued with his explanation about why the new law is not a new Jim Crow law. Section 25 of the bill says that a voter can write “the number of his or her Georgia driver’s license or identification card” on the application for the absentee ballot. Any voter without a Georgia ID card can “provide a copy of a form of identification listed” in another code section of the Georgia law (§ 21-2-417(c)). The other acceptable forms of identification are “a copy of a current utility bill, bank statement, government check, paycheck, or other government document that shows the name and address of such elector.” That language came from the Help America Vote Act of 2002 approved by then-Sen. Joe Biden (D-Delaware), Sens. Dianne Feinstein (D-California), Dick Durbin (D-Illinois), Harry Reid (D-Nevada), and Patrick Leahy (D-Vermont).

            Von Spakovsky then explained the second provision about the provision of food and water being given to voters at the polls. Georgia does what most other states do – they prohibit electioneering inside or within 150 feet of a polling place or within 25 feet of any voters waiting in line to vote. The previous law prohibited the solicitation of “votes in any manner or by any means or method, nor shall any person distribute or display any campaign material” within such distances. Section 33 of the new bill added “nor shall any person give, offer to give, or participate in the giving of any money or gift, including, but not limited to, food and drink, to any elector” within such distances.

In other words, a candidate and his campaign staffers can’t show up at a polling place with a truckload of pizzas and sodas and start giving them to voters standing in line. The clear intent here is to prevent campaigns, candidates, and political operatives from unduly influencing or bribing voters with money or gifts, including food and drink.

Similarly, federal law (52 U.S.C. § 10307) also prohibits paying or offering to pay anyone to register to vote or to vote. In fact, this ban was part of the original Voting Rights Act of 1965.

According to the U.S. Justice Department’s handbook on “Federal Prosecution of Election Offenses,” this statute has been broadly interpreted to apply to “anything having monetary value, including cash, liquor, lottery chances, and welfare benefits such as food stamps.”

The idea that Georgia is somehow doing something nefarious by preventing gift-giving at the polls is bizarre and ignores the unfortunate, long history we have of this type of corruption and undue influence being used in our elections.

            The State of Georgia is attempting to “protect the security and integrity of the election process.” The criticisms of the law are meant to mislead the citizens of Georgia by using the race card once again. Since Black voters approve of voter ID laws by a high percentage (70%), any reasonable person would assume that the race card should be dropped.

 

Why Are Democrats Complaining about the New Georgia Election Law?

             Numerous state legislatures have been writing new laws to tighten election laws after the disaster known as the 2020 presidential election. Georgia’s new election law brought condemnation from President Joe Biden and other Democrats who claim that the law brings back the old Jim Crow era. There are many Democrat talking points being repeated by the various politicians and media organizations. They claim that the new law will restrict or limit voting by black and brown voters.

            Fred Lucas at The Daily Signal sought to show the difference between the six key myths being spouted by Democrats and the facts about Georgia’s election legislation signed by Governor Brian Kemp last Thursday. 

1. “Restrictions on Casting Absentee Ballots”

[Myth] In his written statement, Biden said of the new law: “It adds rigid restrictions on casting absentee ballots that will effectively deny the right to vote to countless voters.” …

For its part, Fair Fight Action, the group run by [Stacy] Abrams, asserts: “Over 200,000 Georgians lack the appropriate ID under SB 202.”

[Fact] The law does require voter ID for individuals who are casting absentee ballots, which previously was not the case. A vote would need to provide a driver’s license number or another state identification number on the absentee ballot form.

The law also requires voters to request absentee ballots [at least] 11 days before the election. In its previous form, the law allowed voters to request ballots by the Friday before Election Day….

The earliest that Georgia voters may request an application for an absentee ballot will be 77 days before Election Day, down from 180 days….

Kemp said that 96% of Georgia voters already have suitable voter ID, and alternative identification would be provided at no charge to those who need it. [The law states the following:]

“In order to verify that the absentee ballot was voted by the elector who requested the ballot, the elector [voter] shall print the number of his or her Georgia driver’s license number or identification card…. The elector shall also print his or her date of birth in the space provided in the outer oath envelope.

“If the elector does not have a Georgia driver’s license or state identification card issued pursuant to Article 5 of Chapter 5 of Title 40, the elector shall so affirm in the space provided on the outer envelope and print the last four digits of his or her Social Security number in the space provided on the outer oath envelope.

“If the elector does not have a Georgia driver’s license, identification card issued pursuant to Article 5 of Chapter 5 of Title 40, or a Social Security number, the elector shall so affirm in the space provided on the outer oath envelope and place a copy of one of the forms of identification set forth in subsequent (c) of Code Section 21-2-417 in the outer envelope."

2. “Crime to Provide Water”

[Myth] Biden and Democrats have been spreading this myth. Biden said the following in his formal statement about the law: “It makes it a crime to provide water to voters while the wait in line – lines Republican officials themselves have created by reducing the number of polling sites across the state, disproportionately in Black neighborhoods.”

[Fact] Georgia’s law prohibits campaign workers from distributing food or drink, or anything else of value, to waiting voters, and from setting up a table within 150 feet of the building or 25 feet of a voter…. The law specifically allows official poll workers, as opposed to campaign workers, to provide water to voters.

Specifically, the law says: “No person shall solicit votes in any manner or by any means or method, nor shall any person distribute or display any campaign material, nor shall any person give, offer to give, or participate in the giving of any money or gifts, including, but not limited to, food and drink, to an elector, nor shall any person solicit signatures for any petition, nor shall any person, other than election officials discharging their duties, establish or set up any tables or booths on any day in which ballots are being cast: (1) Within 150 feet of the outer edge of any building within which a polling place is established; (2) Within any polling place; or (3) Within 25 feet of any voter standing in line to vote at any polling place.

… “This Code section shall not be construed to prohibit a poll officer from distributing materials, as required by law, which are necessary for the purpose of instructing electors or from distributing materials prepared by the Secretary of State which are designed solely for the purpose of encouraging voter participation in the election being conducted or from making available self-service water from an unattended receptacle to an elector waiting in line to vote.” …

As to Biden’s charge that Republicans are creating long lines to vote, the new law provides “additional voting equipment or poll workers to precincts containing more than 2,000 electors.”

3. “It Ends Voting Hours Early”

[Myth]In his written statement Friday, Biden said: “Among the outrageous parts of this new state law, it ends voting hours early so working people can’t cast their vote after their shift is over.”

[Fact] The new Georgia law does nothing to change Election Day voting hours from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m., although it expands weekend voting before Election Day.

… The law itself states:

“Requiring two Saturday voting days and two optional Sunday voting days will dramatically increase the total voting hours for voters across the State of Georgia, and all electors in Georgia will have access to multiple opportunities to vote in person on the weekend for the first time.”

4. “Render Drop Boxes Useless”

[Myth] Abram’s Fair Fight Action organization said the law, known as Senate Bill 202, would “render drop boxes ‘useless’ and otherwise harm voters across the state.” …

The law states:

“A board of registrars or absentee ballot clerk shall establish at least one drop box as a means for absentee by mail electors to deliver their ballots to the board of registrars or absentee ballot clerk.

“A board of registrars or absentee ballot clerk may establish additional drop boxes, subject to the limitations of this Code section, but may only establish additional drop boxes totaling the lesser of either one drop box for every 100,000 active registered voters in the county or the number of advance voting locations in the county. Any additional drop boxes shall be evenly geographically distributed by population in the county."

5. “Jim Crow 2.0”?

[Myth] Upon the Georgia Legislature’s passage of the bill, Abrams … said…: “Republican state leaders willfully undermine democracy by giving themselves authority to overturn results they do not like. Now, more than ever, Americans must demand federal action to protect voting rights as we continue to fight against these blatantly unconstitutional efforts that are nothing less than Jim Crow 2.0.”

… Biden later tweeted a similar assertion. “It’s Jim Crow in the 21^st Century – and it must end.”

[Fact] … Putting aside what is or isn’t acceptable political hyperbole, Jim Crow has a literal historical legacy.

Factually, the term Jim Crow laws refers to state and local laws in the segregated South that existed from after the Civil War until at least the mid-1960s.

With regard to voting, these laws included requiring poll tests for black voters before they could cast a ballot. These overtly racist laws also restricted employment and educational opportunities for black Americans.

Schools, parks, recreation facilities, and other public buildings routinely were segregated throughout the South, as were public restrooms and water fountains. The Jim Crow era included terrorist activity by the Ku Klux Klan, which committed violent and deadly acts against blacks such as lynchings, often with impunity….

6. “Legislative Takeover”

[Myth] Abram’s Fair Fight Action says Georgia’s new law would “allow legislative takeovers of local boards of elections, and much more.”

[Fact] The fact is that under the new law, the state Legislature does indeed have an increased role in the State Election Board under the new law.

Meanwhile, Georgia’s secretary of state will have a diminished role. This is the basis for the claim that partisan politics could play a role.

“The secretary of state will no longer chair the State Election Board, becoming instead a non-voting ex-officio member,” Georgia Public Broadcasting explained. “The new chair would be nonpartisan but appointed by a majority of the state House and Senate.

“The chair would not be allowed to have been a candidate, participate in a political party organization or campaign or [have] made campaign contributions for two years prior to being appointed.”

            I do not know much about Georgia’s prior laws, but I do offer my opinion about the Democrat talking points following the signing of the new law. The new law in and of itself seems like common sense and something that any person desiring fair and honest elections could support. The fact that Democrats at all levels – including the White House – are complaining about the new law tells me that the law was much needed. There is a good chance that Democrats in Georgia used the old law to commit fraud in prior elections. Now that the law has been changed and tightened, it will be more difficult for them to cheat.