Warning: unlink(/tmp/jnewslibrary-y1kXiQ.tmp): No such file or directory in /home/customer/www/gasiantimes.com/public_html/wp-admin/includes/class-wp-filesystem-ftpext.php on line 142
Georgia secretary of state wants to end general election runoffs - Georgia Asian Times
  • Home
  • Metro Asian News
  • Misc Asia
  • Lifestyle
  • Business
  • Art
  • Health
  • Eat Out
  • Events
  • Podcast
ABOUT
Advertise in GAT
Contact us
Monday, February 6, 2023
Georgia Asian Times
International Insurance of Georgia
  • Home
  • Metro Asian News
  • Misc Asia
  • Lifestyle
  • Business
  • Art
  • Health
  • Eat Out
  • Events
  • Podcast
  • Login
No Result
View All Result
  • Home
  • Metro Asian News
  • Misc Asia
  • Lifestyle
  • Business
  • Art
  • Health
  • Eat Out
  • Events
  • Podcast
No Result
View All Result
Georgia Asian Times
No Result
View All Result
  • Home
  • Metro Asian News
  • Misc Asia
  • Lifestyle
  • Business
  • Art
  • Health
  • Eat Out
  • Events
  • Podcast
Home Nation

Georgia secretary of state wants to end general election runoffs

The push by Republican Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger to discard the unusual format for general elections comes after high-profile Senate races went into overtime this year and in 2020, with Democrats winning each time.

Georgia Asian Times by Georgia Asian Times
December 14, 2022
in Nation
Georgia secretary of state wants to end general election runoffs
Share on FacebookShare on Twitter

Atlanta, December 14, 2022 — Georgia’s top elections official urged lawmakers on Wednesday to end general election runoffs — this month’s bitter Senate contest was the latest example — but offered no specific proposals, saying there is a “wide range of options.”

The push by Republican Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger to discard the unusual format for general elections comes after high-profile Senate races went into overtime this year and in 2020, with Democrats winning each time. Democrat Raphael Warnock has twice won runoffs, including his Dec. 6 victory over GOP challenger Herschel Walker.

Raffensperger said in a statement that Georgia is “one of the only states that always seems to have a runoff” and that the legislature should “consider reforms.” Georgia is one of four states that have runoffs in general elections, though only Georgia and Louisiana use them for all races. Nine states hold runoffs in primaries, though the rules vary.

Georgia lawmakers said possible options include lowering the threshold for winning an election to a 45% plurality or using ranked choice ballots for voters, as some other states do, to designate additional choices beyond a first candidate, allowing for an instant runoff.

AD: High Museum of Atlanta

Under current Georgia law, if no candidate wins more than 50% of the vote in a primary or general election, the top two finishers advance to a runoff election.

In most states, the candidate who earns the greatest number of votes, even if that is far short of a majority, wins a party primary or general election. But most Southern states require runoffs in primaries, an outgrowth of a time when white supremacist Democrats were the overwhelming majority and sought to consolidate support behind one candidate to prevent splits in general elections that could threaten their rule.

Georgia went one step further in the 1960s and also required runoffs for general elections, a move the sponsor said was meant to bolster white rule.

Raffensperger’s spokesman said the secretary of state was unavailable for interviews this week and that it is up to lawmakers to decide on any changes. Raffensperger is not proposing altering the requirement for runoffs after party primaries.

GOP Gov. Brian Kemp, incoming Lt. Gov. Burt Jones, who will preside over the state Senate, and representatives of the state Republican and Democratic parties did not immediately respond to requests for comment Wednesday. A big turnover among the General Assembly’s leadership is expected to mean a slow start to legislating and possibly a limited appetite for big changes in the session that begins Jan. 9.

State Rep. Alan Powell, a Republican who has been the vice chairman of the House Special Committee on Election Integrity, said he would not support changes that would let people win elections with less than a majority.

“As a philosophical point, if you’re going to have an elected person represent you, they need to have at least 50 plus 1% of the voters to ratify their elections,” Powell said Wednesday.

But Democratic state Sen. Elena Parent said she had heard discussion about lowering the threshold to avoid a runoff from the current majority to a requirement of 45%. Parent said she would be in favor of at least a trial of instant runoffs because runoffs in many local elections have very low turnout, which she said is a “very undemocratic” way of determining elections.

State Sen. Michelle Au, a Democrat, said she would be “shocked if we didn’t see several versions of plurality or instant runoff proposed.”

Powell said ranked choice voting was discussed in 2021 when Georgia overhauled its election law, but that it only won support for overseas voters as a way to cut the time for runoffs from nine weeks to four weeks.

When no one reached the 50% threshold in either of two U.S. Senate races two years ago, the runoff election was held nine weeks later, on Jan. 5, 2021. Warnock and fellow Democrat Jon Ossoff defeated Republican incumbents Kelly Loeffler and David Perdue, respectively.

Changes in a 2021 election law meant that the final day of voting in this year’s runoff election was just four weeks after the general election. That shortened runoff period presented a challenge for county election officials, particularly with the Thanksgiving holiday falling in the middle. – AP

 

Previous Post

Limited English Proficiency a Major Access Barrier to Healthcare for AAPIs, according to study

Next Post

House passes bill to extend government funding for 1 week

Georgia Asian Times

Georgia Asian Times

Related Posts

China: Balloon over US skies is for research, wind pushed it
Nation

China: Balloon over US skies is for research, wind pushed it

February 3, 2023
Prosecutor: $100 repair bill sparked Half Moon Bay shooting
Nation

Prosecutor: $100 repair bill sparked Half Moon Bay shooting

January 31, 2023
Trump investigations: Georgia prosecutor ups anticipation
Nation

Trump investigations: Georgia prosecutor ups anticipation

January 30, 2023
7 dead as California mourns 3rd mass killing in 8 days
Nation

7 dead as California mourns 3rd mass killing in 8 days

January 24, 2023
Gunman in Lunar New Year massacre found dead; motive unclear
Nation

Gunman in Lunar New Year massacre found dead; motive unclear

January 23, 2023
Gunman kills 10 near Lunar New Year festival in California
Nation

Gunman kills 10 near Lunar New Year festival in California

January 22, 2023
Next Post

House passes bill to extend government funding for 1 week

Signup Free E-Newsletter

Upcoming Events

Feb 18
6:00 pm - 11:00 pm

Spring Festival 2023

View Calendar
Logo

 

CONTACT US

Follow Us

MOST INFLUENTIAL

GAT 25 Most Influential Asian Americans Gala celebrates Asian voice

GAT 25 Most Influential Asian Americans Gala celebrates Asian voice

July 18, 2022

Video highlights of GAT 25 Most Influential Asian Americans in Georgia

July 17, 2022

2022 GAT 25 Most Influential Asian Americans in Georgia-Awards Gala

July 17, 2022

LINKS OF INTEREST

ATL Asian Film Festival

GAT on Facebook

Lunar New Year of Rabbit - GAT Special Section
  • Contact Us
  • Advertise in GAT
  • ABOUT

© 2023 Georgia Asian Times - Empowered by 8SOL. Managed by Arckopolis.

No Result
View All Result
  • Home
  • Metro Asian News
  • Misc Asia
  • Lifestyle
  • Business
  • Art
  • Health
  • Eat Out
  • Events
  • Podcast

© 2023 Georgia Asian Times - Empowered by 8SOL. Managed by Arckopolis.

Welcome Back!

Sign In with Google
OR

Login to your account below

Forgotten Password?

Retrieve your password

Please enter your username or email address to reset your password.

Log In

Add New Playlist

Are you sure want to unlock this post?
Unlock left : 0
Are you sure want to cancel subscription?

Warning: unlink(/tmp/jnewsfirstload-uM9Ozo.tmp): No such file or directory in /home/customer/www/gasiantimes.com/public_html/wp-admin/includes/class-wp-filesystem-ftpext.php on line 142