Georgia GOP Purges 309,000 ‘Inactive’ Voters From Registration List, Sparking Outrage
More than 300,000 Georgians have lost their right to vote due to “inactivity” in recent elections.
Republican Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger proposed purging over 300,000 voters he deemed “inactive,” and a federal judge allowed it as of Monday (Dec. 16) night, the Washington Post reports.
“Proper list maintenance is not only required by long-standing laws but is also important in maintaining the integrity and smooth functioning of elections,” Raffensperger said in a statement, the Washington Post reports.
"Georgians should not lose their right to vote simply because they have not expressed that right in recent elections, and Georgia's practice of removing voters who have declined to participate in recent elections violates the United States Constitution," said Lauren Groh-Wargo, CEO of Fair Fight Action, a voting rights group founded by former Georgia gubernatorial candidate Stacey Abrams, the Washington Post reports.
According to the Marietta Daily Journal, a group of concerned residents are planning to flood the federal courthouse in downtown Atlanta on Thursday (Dec. 19), when a U.S. District Court judge is expected to rule on a possible injunction against the state over voting rights.
Judge Steve Jones made the ruling Monday (Dec. 16) allowing Raffensperger’s purging of 309,000 voters listed as inactive from the state’s rolls, the Marietta Daily Journal reports.
Abrams filed a lawsuit to block the state’s legal stance on purging the voter rolls, which requires residents to vote to remain active, the Marietta Daily Journal reports.
The ruling in Georgia follows a similar ruling in Wisconsin, which stripped away the voting rights of 234,000 Wisconsinites, the Washington Post reports.
Democratic presidential candidate Bernie Sanders tweeted his dismay for both states.
“To Republic officials in Georgia and Wisconsin who are too cowardly to engage in free and fair elections, I say: get out of politics and get another job,” he tweeted Monday (Dec. 16).
