Voting Rights

E. Stinehelfer

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Voting Rights in Georgia

Demonstrators protest Georgia's voting in Mar 2021. Photo: Megan Varner/Getty Images

Voting Rights changes in 2021

In 2021, the Georgia General Assembly passed SB 202, also known as the “Election Integrity Act of 2021.” This legislation changed how voters in Georgia participate in government either through the mail or in person at the polls. The New York Times outlines several of these changes, like the restriction on the number of absentee ballot boxes available in each voting district. There were also changes to when and where early voters could go to the polls, what kind of assistance (like water and food) could be provided to voters and where it could be provided, and absentee ballots now require a photocopy of a state-issued ID in order to be valid. These and many more restrictions mean that voting in Georgia can be more complicated than ever.

NBC News released an article in March 2022 that outlined the struggles of two couples, the Kings and the Abbotts, who live in the greater Atlanta area. The Kings told NBC that they waited eight hours to vote at their polling location in Cobb County, along with 1,500 other people who had arrived before 9am on their early voting day during the election last fall. Varana King expressed concern that SB 202 will make voting even harder, and she isn’t alone. According to the same article, a Quinnipiac University poll found that among Black registered voters in Georgia, only 40% expected that it would be very easy to vote in the upcoming elections compared to 73% of white voters. Among those same voters, only 42% are very confident that the 2022 elections will have a fair opportunity vote, and 14% say they aren’t confident at all.

Potential Changes in 2022

In March 2022, the Georgia General Assembly House of Representatives passed House Bill 1464. This vote was decided 98-73 along party lines, according to US News, who released an article about the potential effects of this bill, if it passes in the Senate. The same article outlines a few of the concerning changes that legislators are hoping to make in the months leading up to the 2022 election season. First, the bill would give the Georgia Bureau of Investigation the ability to investigate election outcomes without an invitation from the Georgia Department of State, undermining the authority of the Secretary of State. It would also require new, extensive chain-of-custody paperwork to be filed during the handling of ballots, which will probably slow and over complicate the ballot counting — and auditing — process. There is also a provision that would allow private donations to election administrations and give every citizen the ability to inspect paper ballots after the election. Finally, the bill would give voting districts the ability to further restrict the number of polling machines in an area based on the number of voters who already participated in early voting, potentially further lengthening the time individuals will have to wait in line to vote.

Why does this matter?

Voting is a right, not a privilege. You do not have to earn the right to vote and participate in government. The right to vote is so fundamental to democracy that it was enshrined not only in the United States Constitution and the Voting Rights Act of 1965, but is also upheld by the international community in the International Convention on Civil and Political Rights Article 25 . According to Resonate, 23% of voters in Georgia are swing voters, while Democrats and Republicans account for 35% and 28% of voters, respectively. This means that now, more than ever, the rights of individuals to participate in government, and to vote for a representative, is crucial to ensuring the Georgians are fairly and accurately represented.

Infographic by Resonate

What can we do about it?

Reading up on how to vote in your area, understanding when and where voting will take place, and making sure you are registered to vote is a great first step. You can do this easily at the Secretary of State’s website, and you should encourage friends and family to do the same. You can also get in touch with non-profit organizations like the Southern Poverty Law Center and the American Civil Liberties Union to find out more about how you can make a difference in your local community. But most importantly, you can vote, and encourage others to vote. In times like these, it is easy to believe that our voices don’t matter. However, if that were true, there would be no efforts to restrict it. So get out there and vote!

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