Kemp signs Election Integrity Act of 2021
Featured Stories, News, Politics March 25, 2021
ATLANTA – Election reform is coming to Georgia after Governor Brian Kemp (R) signed the SB 202, Election Integrity Act of 2021, mere hours after it landed on his desk.
During his televised remarks about the legislation Kemp stated, “With Senate Bill 202, Georgia will take another step in ensuring elections, accessible and fair.”
He thanked Chairman Barry Flemming and Chairman Max Burns and Senate and House Leadership for their work on the issue.
Kemp also mentioned his fight to keep Georgia’s elections fair by investigating voter fraud and defending the state’s voter ID laws.
“After November I knew like so many of you that significant reforms to our state elections were needed. There’s no doubt there were many alarming issues with how the election was handled and those problems understandable led to the crisis of confidence at the ballot box here in Georgia,” Kemp said.
Kemp was the first to call on Raffensperger to audit the absentee ballots and did so four times.
SB 202 replaces signature match with a state-issued ID requirement and Kemp believes this will streamline the absentee ballot process. He added the bill makes it “easy to vote and hard to cheat.”
Weekend voting will be expanded to two mandatory Saturdays and two optional Sundays. Ballot drop boxes will be secured 24/7 and security paper is required for ballot authentication.
“November 2020 election saw a 350 percent increase in the use of absentee ballots,” Kemp explained. “This obviously led local election workers to have to process far more ballots using a time consuming, labor-intensive, and at times arbitrary process.”
Georgia Democrats have been vocal about their opposition to the bill, calling it a power grab for a declining party that doesn’t know how to connect with a changing Georgia.
Election Integrity Act of 2021 does limit the power of the Secretary of State, removing the elected official as chairman of the state board of elections. The Secretary of State will now be a “nonvoting ex officio member” and the legislature will appoint the chairman. The state board can now oversee and review the performance of local election boards too. If a board is found lacking, the state board can appoint a new supervisor for that county.
The 90-plus page bill can be read on the General Assembly site.
President Joe Biden (D) spoke about the election reform legislation sweeping Republican-controlled state legislatures. He called the bills “sick” saying it made “Jim Crow look like Jim Eagle.” He promised to do everything in his power to stop the reform efforts.
Other states with election bills in process are Arizona, Michigan, Nevada, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, and Wisconsin.
https://www.gpb.org/events/news/2021/03/25/governor-kemp-news-conference
Gooch discusses Senate’s election reform measures
News, Politics February 16, 2021
CLEVELAND, Ga: During a White County Republican meeting, Senator Steve Gooch (R-Dahlonega) presented details about the omnibus election reform bill.
The legislation encompasses the 15 bills floating around the Senate dealing with the issue. Senate leadership hopes to pass the bill by crossover day and then let the House vote on it. Crossover day is day 27, which will be around two weeks from now.
“A lot of these things we talked about today were incorporated by Republicans in the last 20 years. I think Governor Sonny Perdue signed a lot of this stuff into law. A lot of us feel, maybe it has gone a little bit too far. We’re trying to address some commonsense solutions that we’ve seen over the last three or four years. This is not a reaction completely based on what happened on November 3 or January 5. This is a culmination of things that have been drifting for several years now,” Gooch remarked.
The senator has received thousands of emails regarding election integrity and reform in Georgia. He commented that people had lost faith in the system.
Gooch’s on board for a photo ID requirement for absentee ballots and wants every “legal vote to count.”
“We want every legal voter in Georgia to go vote. We’re not trying to suppress the vote. We’re not trying to keep Democrats from coming out to vote,” Gooch added.
The absentee ballot process possesses several loopholes, and Senator Gooch thinks adding a photo ID is an excellent first step. Several instances of mishandling of signature verification occurred during the 2020 election. The Secretary of State’s Office confirmed fraud occurred and opened investigations. However, they claimed it wasn’t enough to change the election.
Gooch stated, “I’m ready to get rid of all the drop boxes that was not allowed in state law, and it’s still not allowed in state law. That was done as an executive order by the Secretary of State under a national emergency powers act, and we’re going to close the loophole.”
Cobb, Fulton, Gwinnett, Clayton, and Dekalb set up 150 drop boxes using grant money. A current House bill prevents election boards from accepting grant money. Gooch agreed that grants need to stop because the money “was discriminatory in where they were being spent.” The contributions weren’t being spent statewide, according to Gooch.
Georgia State Senator for District 51 Steve Gooch (R) presents election reform omnibus bill details.
The omnibus bill would make mobile units a permanent precinct unit. It couldn’t move freely throughout a county.
Ninth District Chairman Rebecca Yardley asked the Senate to examine how county election offices operate and perhaps provide the Secretary of State’s Office with oversight into local election procedure. She also thanked Gooch for “stepping out in front” of the election integrity issue.
Last week, the Senate introduced a bill that would create a statewide grand jury for election fraud investigations. The Georgia attorney general could present fraud evidence to the grand jury, and they would decide to move forward or not.
One attendee expressed the need to reach minority voters and letting them know the opportunities possible by voting Republican.
Gooch warned, “it will get rough out there” when dealing with election reform, especially on social media. He encouraged Republicans to enter in civil and polite discussion with those opposed and clarify the measures aren’t about voter suppression but restoring integrity.
People can expect the omnibus bill to drop sometime this week in the Senate.
Reapportionment
Gooch mentioned Governor Brian Kemp (R) would probably call a special session to discuss redistricting later in the year. He added to look for North Georgia’s population to grow and South Georgia’s to decrease. Some North Georgia districts might shrink. Currently, it seems unlikely for Georgia to gain a 15th congressman.
Budget Updates
After the significant cuts made last year, the General Assembly has restored most of the monies. The General Assembly has reinstated almost 90 percent of the education cuts, and GDOT received $92 million for roadwork.
The state will take steps to help out the struggling tourist business. Governor Brian Kemp added $1 million specifically to help out the industry. The Perry State Fair received a couple of million dollars to combat its almost year-long shutdown.