With Sen. Raphael Warnock’s reelection still awaiting a runoff hurdle, Georgia Democrats are alleging inconsistent state voting laws by Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger.
Democrats argued in a filing sent Tuesday to the Fulton County Superior Court that Raffensperger is incorrect in preventing early voting on Nov. 26 because it falls right after a state holiday.
“Secretary Raffensperger appeared on national television on November 9 and stated that he ‘anticipate[s] that some counties may likely have Saturday voting following Thanksgiving,’ the Georgia Democratic Party and Warnock’s campaign claimed.
“That same day, his office’s Chief Operating Officer, Gabriel Sterling, appeared on a different national news network and explained that counties could open their polls to voters on the Saturday after Thanksgiving ‘if they so choose.’”
However, “just three days later, the Secretary reversed course, distributing a bulletin informing counties that they were not permitted to hold advance voting on November 26,” the plaintiffs added.
Raffensperger, on the other hand, has appealed to a 2016 state law prohibiting early voting days after state and federal holidays. The Saturday up for debate is immediately after Thanksgiving and Robert E. Lee’s Birthday.
In a statement by Raffensperger on Tuesday morning, the recently reelected official accused Democrats of seeking to change Georgia law before the runoff to give Warnock an advantage over Republican candidate Herschel Walker.
“Senator Warnock and his Democratic Party allies are seeking to change Georgia law right before an election based on their political preferences,” he said. “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.”
Warnock came on top in the first round of voting, garnering 49.43% of the vote to Walker’s 48.5%. Libertarian candidate Chase Oliver boasted 2.07% — enough to send the race into a runoff.
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