New Georgia Law Spurs Bogus Challenges to Voter Eligibility

In addition to what you will hopefully read below. Repubs and Dems went to court and presented their reasoning for and against new laws allowing for a “reasonable inquiry” to be conducted before election certification and gives election workers the ability to “to examine all election related documentation created during the conduct of elections.”  You can surmise who was for and against this..

New Georgia Law Spurs Bogus Challenges to Voter Eligibility

by Andrew Garber

Brennan Center for Justice

A new law went into effect in Georgia this month that makes it easier for people to attempt to kick their neighbors off the rolls through voter challenges. Georgia already made voter challenges far too easy. Now, voters in the state face increased risk of losing their right to vote or being forced to defend it at public hearings, and election deniers have wide latitude to spread disinformation and waste election official time. These challenges are fueled by false claims about the 2020 election being “stolen,” including allegations that ineligible people voted, even though all evidence shows there was no widespread fraud in that election.

Some of the county election boards tasked with implementing this undemocratic law are taking steps to mitigate the damage. Fulton County’s board advised that it will continue to apply federal safeguards for voters, that challengers must have specific evidence as opposed to the generalized evidence they often present, and that the board will not remove anyone from the rolls on the basis of clerical errors such as a typo in an address. It even gives specific examples, including that simple list matching is not enough to remove someone from the rolls. All counties in the state should follow this example.

Moreover, challenges can be intimidating. Voters may become afraid when they learn their name is on a list submitted to the government or they get a notice that their right to vote is in jeopardy.

Challenges also spread disinformation when people use challenges as “proof” that ineligible people are voting. No state’s rolls are perfect, but there is no evidence to support such claims in Georgia or elsewhere.

Also concerning are all the questions the law doesn’t answer: mainly, what must be proven at a hearing to remove a voter. Consider a challenge on the basis that a voter is deceased. Is the challenger’s word enough? Could a newspaper obituary suffice? Is a death certificate required? The open-ended nature of the law invites widespread challenges while leaving already swamped election workers to figure out the details.

In an era of seemingly endless attacks on voters and elections, states should be protecting voters and election workers. Georgia has instead offered its voter rolls to an election denial experiment. Rather than accept the good news — the state’s elections are not plagued by fraud — individuals unhappy with recent election outcomes have changed the rules of the game to try to create the appearance of cheating where none exists.