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This is a review of Georgia's new election bill which has been signed by The Governor. It is comprehensive and addresses many of the issues raised by the last election. It is fair, should increase confidence in believable and timely election outcomes and is aimed at increasing voting participation.
It cuts the ground out from liars like Stacey Abrams who seeks election through heightening wedge issues and feckless politicians, corporate executives and mass media twerps who cast aspersions on Georgians accusing us of returning to Jim Crow habits.
Senate Bill 202 is the ‘Election Integrity Act of 2021’.
This bill was a collaborative effort between the House and the Senate, incorporating ideas from both chambers and parties in its final version. SB 202 ensures that Georgia elections are as secure and accessible as they have ever been. We have uniformly expanded early voting hours, meaning all Georgians have equal access to early voting, no matter where they live. We have done away with the subjective signature “verification” process for absentee voting, instead requiring voter ID for all voters - regardless of whether you choose to vote absentee, early, or on Election Day. This legislation passed the House and the Senate in its final version on Thursday, March 25, and was signed by the Governor on the same day.
State Election Board and the Secretary of State
The Chairperson of the State Election Board will now be elected by the General Assembly, with the Secretary of State becoming an ex-officio, non-voting member of the Board. If the State Election Board intends to create new emergency rules for an election, they are required to notify elected officials (including the General Assembly) and the public. Additionally, the circumstances in which the State Election Board can create these new emergency rules are narrowly defined.
When the SEB adopts an emergency rule relative to a state of emergency, the SEB must submit the rule to the General Assembly no later than 20 days before it takes effect. Any emergency rule adopted by the State Election Board may be suspended upon the majority vote of the Judiciary Committees of the House of Representatives or Senate. Likewise, the SEB or the Secretary of State must notify the Judiciary Committees of the House and the Senate before entering into any relevant consent agreements, settlements, or consent orders.
The SEB has the authority to suspend a county or municipal election superintendent and appoint a temporary replacement. Local governing authorities or applicable members of the General Assembly may request a performance review of local election officials. An independent performance review board will conduct the review at the State Election Board’s direction.
The Secretary of State must provide the support and assistance needed by the SEB. The Secretary of State is also authorized to regularly obtain voter information from a multi-state database to ensure that Georgia voters are not registered in other states and that they are actual residents of Georgia. The SOS shall obtain regular information regarding voters who have died or otherwise become ineligible to vote in Georgia.
The Secretary of State must create a pilot program for posting digital images of scanned paper ballots.
Georgia’s Attorney General is authorized to establish a telephone hotline for Georgians to submit complaints and allegations of voter intimidation and illegal election activities.
Private Donations to Boards of Registrars and Elections Superintendents
Boards of registrars and election superintendents are prohibited from accepting funds from sources other than a county, municipal, state, or federal governing authority. Private donations may no longer be made to boards of registrars and election superintendents. The SEB will create a report on a proposed method for accepting donations from groups that want to contribute to Georgia’s election efforts and look at ways of distributing those donations equitably across the state.
Absentee Ballots
Absentee ballot applications will be accepted beginning 78 days before an election and ending 11 days before an election (the second Friday before an election) to ensure that electors can receive and return their absentee ballots in time for them to be counted. A Georgia voter who is in the hospital can apply for an absentee ballot up to or on the day of Election Day. Applications for voters who are in the hospital must be processed immediately, and ballots are to be delivered to the individual as soon as possible.
The Secretary of State and other Government entities are prohibited from sending unsolicited absentee ballot applications to Georgia voters. Absentee ballot applications must be available on Secretary of State and county websites. Absentee ballots must be printed on security paper.
Non-governmental organizations are permitted to send absentee ballot applications, but they are now required to check their mailing list to determine whether the individuals they are sending the applications to have already voted or already requested or submitted an absentee ballot. If an individual has already voted (in person or by absentee) or already requested an absentee ballot, the organization is required to remove them from their mailing list and cannot send them an absentee ballot application. This change will reduce confusion for voters by reducing the likelihood that they continue to receive absentee ballot applications after voting or requesting an absentee ballot. Additionally, the organization sending the absentee ballot application must clearly and prominently identify itself on the face of the application, state that it is not a governmental entity, that the application is not a ballot, and that its completion is not required to vote.
Absentee ballot applications and the absentee ballots themselves must include the voter’s driver’s license number or identification card number found on a state-issued ID, which can be obtained free of charge at the elections office or the Department of Driver’s Services local offices. If the voter does not have either ID number, the voter must submit a photocopy of an approved ID form (any identification permitted by the federal Help America Vote Act) with both their application for an absentee ballot and with their absentee ballot.
The uniform instructions provided with the absentee ballot must include the following: specific instructions that the elector must mark the ballot in private and will not allow any unauthorized person to deliver or return the ballot on their behalf as well as an oath, under penalty of false swearing, affirming such; a list of persons authorized to return a completed ballot to the board of registrars on behalf of the elector (member of household, a relative, or a caregiver); and the contact information of the State Election Board.
A person is guilty of a felony if they accept an absentee ballot from an elector for delivery or return to the board of registrars and are not authorized to do so - making ballot harvesting a felony. It is also a felony for an unauthorized person to observe a voter while casting their ballot to see how the voter voted, protecting Georgians’ right to a secret ballot. It is now a misdemeanor to photograph or record a voted ballot.
Absentee Ballot Processing
Elections supervisors are allowed to start scanning absentee ballots into the system two weeks before election day. They are required to begin scanning absentee ballots into the system one week before election day. The process must be open to the public, but only the superintendent, their employee, or their designee can touch the ballots or ballot container. Anyone involved in processing or scanning absentee ballots must swear an oath before beginning the process.
The scanned absentee ballots’ tally cannot be reviewed by elections staff until after polls close on election day. Absentee ballots must be printed on security paper which will prevent counterfeit ballots from entering the system. When requested by the superintendent, but not earlier than the third Monday before the election, a registrar or absentee ballot clerk must deliver the absentee ballots, rejected ballots, ballot applications, and the list of certified and rejected ballots to a designated location. At that location, the superintendent must ensure that the ballots are opened and tabulated.
The superintendent is required to report absentee ballot returns to the public as soon as possible following the closing of the polls on election day. Failure to do so subjects the superintendent to sanctions by the State Election Board and, under certain circumstances, review by an independent performance review board.
On each business day of the absentee voting period, the county board of registrars or absentee ballot clerk must report to the secretary of state and post the following information: the numbers of absentee ballots that have been issued, returned, and rejected. On each business day of the absentee voting period and for three days following the election, the county board of registrars or absentee ballot clerk must report to the secretary of state and post the following information: the numbers of provisional ballots that have been voted, verified, cured and accepted for counting, and the number of daily provisional ballots rejected.
The secretary of state can inspect and audit absentee ballot applications or envelopes at any time during the 24-month mandatory retention period.
Absentee Ballot Drop Boxes
Each county is required to have one secure absentee ballot dropbox. If a county has more than 100,000 voters, it may have additional dropboxes (1 per 100,000 voters). All dropboxes must be located inside an early voting location or the board of registrars or board of elections offices. The dropboxes are only open during early voting hours, and election officials must actively monitor the drop boxes. Absentee ballots will be collected each evening, and the dropboxes will be certified empty each morning before being opened to receive ballots. Dropboxes are allowed outside of such locations during a state of emergency declared by the Governor.
Early Voting
Early voting will begin the fourth Monday before the election day and end on the Friday before election day. Early voting locations must be open from 9:00 AM to 5:00 PM on weekdays. Early voting locations are permitted to be open between 7:00 AM and 7:00 PM if they choose to do so. Early voting locations must be open on both Saturdays during the early voting period, and locations are permitted to be open on either, or both, Sundays of the early voting period. Early voting is only allowed to occur on the days specified in law and cannot be conducted on any other days.
The board of registrars must publish the dates, times, and locations of advance voting at least 14 days before the advance voting period for a primary or election and at least seven days before the advance voting period for a runoff. Once published, the board of registrars is prohibited from removing an advance voting location unless an emergency occurs.
On each business day of the early voting period, the county board of registrars or absentee ballot clerk must report to the secretary of state and post the following information: the number of persons who have voted at early voting sites in the county or municipality and the number of provisional ballots cast and cured.
Election Day Policies and Voting Equipment
In precincts with more than 2,000 voters, where the voting wait time on election day was more than one hour, the elections superintendent is required to reduce the size of the precinct or add staff and voting equipment to reduce wait times before the next general election. In elections that are not statewide general elections, the election superintendent may provide more or fewer voting booths per precinct than the general election standard of one voting booth per every 250 electors, depending on relevant factors.
No one can give money or gifts, including food and drinks, to a voter within 150 feet of a polling place, within a polling place, or within 25 feet of a voter standing in line to vote. Poll officers can make available unattended, self-service water receptacles for voters standing in line to vote.
Mobile precincts are only allowed when the Governor declares a state of emergency. If a polling location is going to be changed, notice must be posted during the seven days before and on the day of the first election following a change to a polling location. Poll hours at a precinct may only be extended by order of a superior court judge.
When counties schedule the testing of their voting equipment, they are required to run a notice in their local newspaper and notify the Secretary of State’s Office. Additionally, a notice must be placed on the county’s website and the Secretary of State’s website informing the public of the testing time and place.
After polls have closed on election day, poll officials must report the following information to the election superintendent: the total number of ballots cast at the precinct and the total number of provisional ballots cast at the precinct. The chief manager and at least one assistant manager must immediately deliver ballots and election materials to the election superintendent or the counting and tabulating center. The election superintendent shall not cease the counting and tabulation until all ballots are counted and tabulated and shall count and tabulate the ballots as quickly as possible.
Before 10:00 p.m. on election day, the election superintendent must report to the Secretary of State and post in a prominent location specified information regarding the number of ballots cast on election day, the number of ballots cast during advance voting, and the number of returned absentee ballots. Once all votes have been counted, the previously reported totals must be compared with the total number of ballots cast and reported to the Secretary of State. The scanned ballot images created by a voting system are public records that are now subject to disclosure.
Runoff elections will now be held four weeks after the election that created the runoff. For political positions that allow the Governor to appoint a replacement when the seat-holder dies or resigns, there will now be traditional primaries as part of the special election to fill the seat.
Poll Watching
Political parties have the right to designate persons to act as monitors to observe absentee ballot processing and scanning. Poll watchers must receive training from the party or group they represent before serving as a poll watcher. Political parties have the right to designate persons to act as monitors to observe the absentee ballot processing and scanning. Such monitors are prohibited from the following: interfering with the process in any way; using or bringing into the room any type of recording device; engaging in campaigning; endangering the secrecy and security of the ballots; touching the ballots or ballot container; in any way tabulating the votes cast on the absentee ballots; communicating observed information about any ballot, vote, or selection to anyone other than an election official.
Jon Burns represents District 159 in the Georgia General Assembly where he serves as the House Majority Leader.
And:
Salena Zito throws her fastball over the plate:
Joe Cobb was born with both Georgia and baseball in his blood. He is related to both the Detroit Tigers legend Ty Cobb and to Thomas Willis Cobb, the founder of the suburban Atlanta county where the Braves now play.
It is only natural for him to have a deep affinity to both baseball and his
home state. His team has always been the Atlanta Braves. “I cannot emphasize
enough how deep my love for the Braves has been my entire life,” he said from
his home in suburban Atlanta.
Cobb remembers attending games going back when he was six years
old. His favorite player growing up was Dale Murphy. The business executive
admits his attire has too much Braves gear to be healthy for a grown man, and
he cannot remember a month in any summer growing up, or recently, when he
wasn’t at a game, listening to a game on the radio, or at least talking about
the games with his family or friends.
But now he's done with it. All of that affection, fandom, and
dedication went out the window last week when Major League Baseball made the
decision to move the All-Star Game out of Atlanta in reaction to a dubious
interpretation of the state’s new election reform law.
“I am not done because of me," says Cobb. "I am done
because of all of the small businesses that have lost the equivalent to
Christmas. This is for the Uber drivers, street vendors, food trucks,
breweries, restaurants, parking lot attendants who were all depending on this
three-day event to bolster their income.”
“I am also done
because this decision was based on a lie," he adds. "And it was made
by corporate executives based in New York City who live in the wealthiest zip
codes in the country, making decisions based not on the loyalty of their fan
base, but instead under pressure from either their employees or the fear they
won’t be invited to the next cocktail party if they didn’t do it."
In an interview from his office in the state capitol, Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp told me this week that MLB's choice is hurting local small businesses who were already preparing for the weekendlong event in July.
Click here for the full story.
And:
Rubio pitches an unwanted letter to a rube baseball commissioner:
“Taking the All-Star game out of Georgia is an easy way to signal virtues without significant financial fallout. But speaking out against the Chinese Communist Party would involve a significant loss of revenue and being closed out of a lucrative market.” Rubio wrote. “I am under no illusion that Major League Baseball will sacrifice business revenue on behalf of its alleged corporate values. Similarly, I am under no illusion you intend to resign as a member from Augusta National Golf Club. To do so would require a personal sacrifice, as opposed to the woke corporate virtue signaling of moving the All Star Game from Atlanta.”
The full text of the letter is below:
Dear Commissioner Manfred:
I write to ask you whether you intend to maintain your membership at Augusta National Golf Club. As you are well aware, the exclusive members-only club is located in the State of Georgia.
Last week, you “decided that the best way to demonstrate our values as a sport is by relocating this year’s All-Star Game” from Atlanta because of Georgia’s revised election law. It is a decision that will have a bigger impact on countless small and minority owned businesses in and around Atlanta, than the new election law ever will. And one that reeks of hypocrisy.
Will Major League Baseball now end its engagement with nations that do not hold elections at all like China and Cuba? Will you end your lucrative financial relationship with Tencent, a company with deep ties to the Communist Party and actively helps the Chinese Government hunt down and silence political dissidents?
Since Major League Baseball now appears eager to use its “platform” to demonstrate “unwavering support” for fundamental human rights, will you cease your relationship with the Chinese Government, which at this very moment is committing genocide against the Uyghurs Muslims in the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region (XUAR)?
I am, of course, under no expectation any of this will happen. Taking the All-Star game out of Georgia is an easy way to signal virtues without significant financial fallout. But speaking out against the Chinese Communist Party would involve a significant loss of revenue and being closed out of a lucrative market.
In the end, as a citizen of a free nation you, and Major League Baseball, have the right to speak out against laws in the U.S. you disagree with, even if it is on the basis of false information. What would be truly bold, however, is if you would speak out on behalf of the voiceless who face arbitrary imprisonment, forced sterilization, coerced abortions, rape, and other horrific acts at the hands of one of your business partners. I am under no illusion that Major League Baseball will sacrifice business revenue on behalf of its alleged corporate values.
Similarly, I am under no illusion you intend to resign as a member from Augusta National Golf Club. To do so would require a personal sacrifice, as opposed to the woke corporate virtue signaling of moving the All Star Game from Atlanta.
Sincerely,
APR 05 2021
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Please listen to the interviews...there is some sinister bad actors in control right now & everyone needs to be aware. Not good. Unreal interview below...watch all the parts 1-4. I do not think this woman is crazy in anyway...people at CNN might have a motive to make you think that way...on the other hand she is ON to them. And we have to be too.
Mike
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