Atlanta, November 15, 2022 – The Warnock for Georgia campaign, the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee (DSCC), and the Democratic Party of Georgia (DPG) have filed a lawsuit in the Superior Court of Fulton County to protect Georgians’ access to Saturday early voting.
“Illegal attempts to block Saturday voting are another desperate attempt by career politicians to squeeze the people out of their own democracy and to silence the voices of Georgians,” said Quentin Fulks, Warnock for Georgia Campaign Manager. “We’re aggressively fighting to protect Georgia voters' ability to vote on Saturday.”
“Republicans are once again attempting to rig the system to disenfranchise voters' right to participate in our democracy,” Christie Roberts, DSCC Executive Director. “Democrats are committed to fighting back against the Republican campaign of voter suppression and protecting the right of Georgians to early vote on Saturday.”
“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,” Rebecca DeHart, Democratic Party of Georgia 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.”
Key points from the motion:
The Secretary’s interpretation misreads and cherry-picks provisions that have no application to runoffs. Section § 21-2-385(d)(1)’s restrictions on Saturday voting… do not apply to runoffs.
The Legislature expressly distinguished between three different categories of elections: (1) a primary election (referred to as a “primary”); (2) a general election (referred to as an “election,” see id. § 21-2-2(5) (defining “election” as a “general or special election and not . . . a primary or special primary”)); and (3) a runoff.
As the emphasized portions of the language provided above make clear, § 21-2-385(d)(1)’s exception for advance voting on Saturdays falling on or after a holiday applies only to primary and general elections, not runoffs. If the legislature desired otherwise, it “knew how” to say so and its decision not to refer to runoffs—which it references elsewhere throughout the provision—should be respected as a “matter of considered choice.”
