Democratic Party of Georgia files lawsuit to allow Saturday early voting for runoff election

WSBTV.com News Staff
·1 min read
18

The Democratic Party of Georgia, the Warnock for Georgia campaign and the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee have filed a lawsuit in the Superior Court of Fulton County to allow Saturday early voting ahead of the Dec. 6 runoff election.

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Early voting for the runoff election between Sen. Raphael Warnock and Herschel Walker starts Monday, Nov. 28 and ends Friday Dec. 2.

Voters will not be allowed to vote early on Saturday Nov. 26 because it falls two days after Thanksgiving and a day after a state holiday on Nov. 25. The holiday originally celebrated Robert E. Lee’s birthday before Georgia changed it to a normal state holiday in 2015.

According to election officials, state law prohibits in-person early voting if a holiday is within two days of that Saturday for early voting.

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The lawsuit claims the Georgia state secretary’s “interpretation misreads and cherry-picks provisions that have no application to runoffs.” The Democratic Party of Georgia believes the restrictions on Saturday voting does not apply to runoffs.

“The Secretary of State’s guidance regarding Saturday runoff voting is deeply concerning for anyone who believes in the right to vote, and it clearly contradicts Georgia law,” said Rebecca DeHart, Democratic Party of Georgia’s executive director. “We will use every legal tool at our disposal to ensure that Georgia counties can offer voters ample opportunity to cast their ballot as laid out in state law.”

Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger said in a statement:

“If recent elections prove one thing, it’s that voters expect candidates to focus on winning at the ballot box- not at the courthouse. Senator Warnock and his Democratic Party allies are seeking to change Georgia law right before an election based on their political preferences. Instead of muddying the water and pressuring counties to ignore Georgia law, Senator Warnock should be allowing county election officials to continue preparations for the upcoming runoff.”

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