On Monday, Georgia state lawmakers passed a Republican-backed election overhaul on a party-line vote amid fierce opposition.
The Georgia House of Representatives passed H.B. 531 by a vote of 97-72.
The 66-page bill, which was authored by State Rep. Barry Fleming (R-Harlem), would require photo identification for absentee ballot requests, limit access to drop boxes and move up the absentee ballot request deadline to 11 days before election day. It would also shorten weekend voting hours.
The bill is one of many Republican-backed proposals aiming to curb absentee and early voting, both of which became widely popular in Georgia and across the country during the COVID-19 pandemic. Fleming, who chairs the Election Integrity Committee, argues that the bill is needed to help restore trust and integrity in the state’s election processes.
Bills that would end no-excuse absentee voting and automatic voter registration are next on the agenda and could be passed within days.
Opposition
Democrats, who are in the minority in both chambers of the Georgia Legislature, have heavily criticized the Republican proposals. They say that the Republican majority is trying to suppress voters of color following several bruising statewide losses in the 2020 election. State Rep. Bee Nguyen (D-Atlanta) called it the “omnibus voter suppression bill” and said that it “is based on lies and conspiracy theories.”
Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger, who has been on the receiving end of criticism and even death threats from within his own party since the election, has said that he would be more than willing to support changes to Georgia’s election laws, but says that most of the bills “are reactionary to a three month disinformation campaign that could have been prevented.”
Fair Fight, a voting rights organization founded by 2018 Democratic gubernatorial nominee Stacey Abrams, has placed a seven-figure ad buy reminding voters that Georgia Republicans passed the same election laws that are now seeking to overturn.
Protesters gathered outside the Georgia Capitol in the rain early Monday morning to voice their opposition to the bills. The 12-hour demonstration began at 5:31 AM and is set to end at 5:31 PM. The start and end times were set by organizers to coincide with the bill’s number, H.B. 531.
What’s Next
The bill will now move to the Georgia Senate for a vote. Once it clears the Senate, it will head to Gov. Brian Kemp’s desk for a signature. Several other election-related bills could soon be awaiting his signature as well.
Kemp, who previously served as Georgia’s Secretary of State, has not stated whether he will sign or veto these bills. But election lawyers have promised to file lawsuits if he does in fact sign them.