According to the Brennan Center for Justice, there were hundreds of bills introduced during the 2021 legislative session in many states that would restrict voting. The intent is to suppress, subvert and disenfranchise voters.  Figure 1 shows how this played out in 2021.  Each map identifies states that enacted bills in state legislatures that will either restrict or expand voting.  Note that a few states enacted restrictive as well as expansive laws. Restricting or expanding citizens’ right to vote is split among the states. 

As you read ahead, you will find out that the state I live in passed the earliest and one of the most restrictive bills that in the end makes it more difficult to citizens to vote, and also opens the door to the state legislature to suspend county election officials and assume the power to head elections around the state. Texas and Florida followed suit.

            There are two voting bills in the Congress that should be passed and put into law to protect the rights of citizens to vote, especially since the Republicans are conspiring to control elections at the precinct and state levels. The first bill is the Freedom to Vote Act[4] which expands and authorizes that every state be required to have at least two weeks of early voting, as well as permitting no-excuse mail-in voting for every eligible voter.  The bill also calls for Election Day to be a public holiday. To protect individual voters the bill would require that states have a wide range of forms of identification to validate voters.  The bill will also restrict states from changing election laws and eliminate partisan gerrymandering to work toward neutral standards to create vote maps. Voter registration will become automatic and include same day voter registration. 

            The second bill is the John R. Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act.[5]  It is designed to strengthen the basic voting rights law and restore voting to the core protection that were in the 1965 Voting Rights Act. The Act would put a stop to the voting rights violations that spread across the country in which state legislatures have discriminated against many groups of people lessening their ability to vote.

The Georgia Election Law Case

Georgia is a model case for new voter suppression laws in 2021. As a resident of this state, I have made sure that my opinions are known to Republicans and have urged Democrats fight these autocrats. US Sen. Raphael Warnock (D-GA) [KHG1] blasted the Georgia legislature for passing the massive voting bill that would restrict voter access. Warnock said, “I think it’s unfortunate that some politicians have looked at the results and, rather than changing their message, they’re busy trying to change the rules.”[1]

Georgia Republican legislators are perpetuating Trump’s Big Lie and using it as the rationale to claim there was widespread voter fraud. There was no fraud in the 2020 election. Rather than competing to earn votes, Georgia Republicans favor changing the rules to make it harder for the people who voted against them to get to the voting booth. Georgia legislators audaciously established a Special Committee on Election Integrity underscoring their action against a fair and just election system in the state.

I’ve studied this bill, and it would restrict voting by restricting ballot drop boxes and require voter ID for absentee ballots. It’s a disturbing piece of legislation. Although the bill expands the number of days for early voting, the new law requires a personal ID on both in-person and mail-in voting. Some critics claim that this disproportionally affects voters of color.

Where are the Drop Boxes?

The new law also regulates drop boxes and reduces the time for the use of mail-in voting. In past elections, drop boxes were available 24/7, but now they will be located inside the county clerk’s office. And only one drop box per 100,000 voters is allowed. There are 7,234,431 registered voters in the state, which means there would be 72 drop boxes across a large state, or one drop box per 825 square miles). There are 345 square miles in Cobb County, where I live.   Also, it would be unlawful to provide water or food while voters stand in line. This negatively impacts low-income voters who stand in line with their children so that they can take advantage of food services at voting sites.

But more egregious is that the bill enables the Georgia state election board to intervene in county and precinct level elections by suspending county or municipal superintendents based on performance or violation of election laws. This is rather ironic because the president of the United States interfered in the 2020 election, which is a violation of Georgia’s election laws.

Where’d the Secretary of State Go?

The law also removes the Secretary of State from the election board. This is a direct attack on Brad Raffensperger, Georgia’s Secretary of State who stood up to Donald Trump in the phone call on January 2, 2021. I believe that this is a powerful weapon that Republicans will use in the next and future elections. They will be able to appoint their own people to direct the work at local precincts, essentially making it possible to take over elections.

[1] Daniella Diaz, “Warnock Slams GOP-controlled Georgia Legislature for Bill That Would Restrict Voter Access,” CNN, March 21, 2021, retrieved November 21, 2021, https://www.cnn.com/2021/03/21/politics/raphael-warnock-georgia-voting-rights/index.html.