Federal Judge Sides With Republicans On Voting Law

An election law that requires voters to register by a certain period and allows them to vote by mail in runoff elections will remain in effect, according to a federal court in Georgia.

Reports show that the dispute revolved around the Election Integrity Act, a piece of legislation pushed by Republicans in the state. It aims to decrease the runoff election window for Georgia from nine weeks to one month and cut the time period for mail-in votes.

Georgia goes to a runoff when there is no clear winner in the general election. Because of this unusual approach, the confirmation of the results of the elections sometimes takes weeks after the fact.

The United States Department of Justice and Democrat opponents sought to assert that the longer voting time unjustly targets Black voters.

The statute ends voter registration twenty-nine days before each election so that no one can register to vote between the primary or a possible runoff.

Plaintiffs failed to establish that the shortened period disproportionately affected Black voters or that Republican legislators meant to discriminate against black citizens when they passed the bill in 2021, according to U.S. District Judge J.P. Boulee’s ruling. He turned down a motion for an injunction.

Blacks are more inclined to cast their ballots early, according to the plaintiffs’ findings.

According to Boulee, the plaintiffs failed to provide any proof explaining why black voters would have an especially hard time casting their ballots during the expanded early voting session.

Reports revea that Republicans in the state are celebrating the court’s decision in support of the statute, which will safeguard their belief in the validity of the voting process.

The verdict confirms our long-held belief that Georgia’s Election Integrity Act is intended to guarantee safe and fair elections for every citizen, said Brad Raffensperger, Georgia’s secretary of state.  He said they would continue to defend the legislation’s principles.