Actions speak louder than words and some actions scream their intention. Such is the case in Georgia today. The State of Georgia often says that it wants to preserve election integrity but then sets up an election system that is more open to corruption and, given the Georgia power structure, favors Republicans. Or so it would absolutely seem with a new law that forces hand counts of ballots cast on election day, a move that will grind the state’s vote counting to a crawl all due to a law put in place today.
There are some reasons to believe that “election integrity” can still be furthered but it won’t be done fast and that allows a lot of room for games. Last time, President Biden barely skated by with 12,000 votes. This time, what if Trump supporters in the election process think that 50-100 votes here and there, especially as phone calls go out in the day after process, trying to come up with an acceptable number.
At least, that’s what the New York Times is reporting.
The Georgia State Election Board voted on Friday to force counties to hand-count all ballots cast on Election Day, a move critics say could significantly delay the reporting of results in the battleground state and inject chaos into the post-election period.
The new rule, which passed on a 3-2 vote, runs counter to extensive legal advice from the top election official and law enforcement officials in the state. A nonpartisan collective of local election officials had also objected to the change.
Inject chaos? How about inject “more” chaos into the same state? The longer the results take to report, the longer people have to commit corrupt election acts. Additionally, there will always be a hand recount in a close election. So what is the point on holding off reporting those votes? Perhaps a side that wants to inject chaos because that side is perfectly willing to take advantage.
The new rule is the latest in a stream of right-wing election policies passed by the State Election Board over the past few months. The board has come under increasing pressure from critics already concerned that it has been rewriting the rules of the game in a key swing state to favor former President Donald J. Trump.
Yeah, that sure now looks to be a thing and it most certainly has come under increasing pressure to even explain itself given the far right partisanship and positions. But they do justify it by breathlessly and efficiently ignoring the criticism and then, with tremendous effort, pounding their vision through to fruition. It really is that absurd now.
Think about it. In every state in which Democrats are inextricably getting closer, states have passed laws to make it harder to vote. That’s all that’s needed! They don’t need further demographic breakdowns, fancy and expensive computer spreadsheets, none of that! It is just, “Hey, Tex – here’s the thing, come up with a law, son, that just makes it a pain in your Texas-sized ass to vote and that should do it, see what I’m sayin?”
And that’s all that’s done, far too often. But this is a new twist on things and it is the one most boldly open to corruption. This doesn’t say “Make it easier/ or harder to vote.” No, it’s more let’s make it much harder to count.” And that’s a bit of a head scratcher until you’re willing to accept that the more time put in place the more open the process is to manipulation.
“Come here, Peaches. I need you to fix some stuff up here in ____Â because we came up a bit short and need… Thanks, darlin'”
Jason Miciak can be reached at [email protected]
Yet one more in a list of reasons the Electoral College HAS to go.
Savannah Georgia held three slave auctions a month for 116 YEARS!!! I wonder how many children were sold, separated from their mothers, grandmothers, fathers, grandfathers, etc.? I wonder how many women and girls were raped? And white people are still tolerating racists to make laws. And we think we are a moral country? My girlfriend owns land next to the Tuskegee air field because the government gave it to her family after killing her grandfather by giving him syphilis without telling him or treating it. Reparations? What could this country possibly give black folks to make up for the evil of slavery? And to think a nazi racist rapist criminal traitor is again running for an office he stole in 2016. SHAMEFUL SHAMEFUL! For any of you who vote for trump…ROT IN HELL!
Cheeto Jebus gots to go anyway anyhow..
I think if we should be trusting the election workers in Fulton County (which I do), we should also trust the election workers in other places. This is what made me furious at Trump and his henchmen speaking the great lie. Most of the election workers in the states I’ve lived in are paid almost nothing. They are basically volunteers. A long time ago, in California, I sometimes participated. If I remember correctly, for a whole day assisting at the polling place, I was paid $15. My mother was the supervisor over the election materials which basically cost around two days work to go to the Registrar of Voters to get the election materials, inspect them, set up the polling location in the church, etc. was paid (as I recall) $25. At that time, minimum wage was about $5/h. So we were not even paid minimum wage. Those numbers I can remember, but the other places my family had lived were probably similar or worse. I have little reason to expect that those numbers have changed much. The fact is, without these sorts of volunteers, states would have a very difficult time.
Again, I see that Mendacious Orange has infected all our brains with his sickening lies and manipulation. He has created many flying monkeys. This is what made the inverted ex-King Midas and Rudy Juliani’s lies about Ruby Freeman and Shaye Moss so heinous. They were basically volunteers who did this out of a sense of duty. It is exactly this kind of ruination of our electoral system that will make institutions fall. TRUST is fundamental in these processes and fanning the flames of distrust will ultimately lead to the worst possible outcome.
Yes, there may be some political operators who have joined a multitude to do evil. Nevertheless, try to remember to thank your local election workers rather than regard them with suspicion.
hey Ursula, you say in your article several times that a new law was passed. that is not the case. it is a ruling by an unelected board. I doubt this decision will hold up in court so close to the election. BTW a nutjob Texas county tried this for the primary, it was a disaster.
Bingo. It will be challenged and in fact one of these rules (they are not laws) is set to be argued in the beginning of October if NPR got it correct. I have a real hard time believing any court allowing a non-elected board to exercise legislative powers especially over elections and in fact usurping as well the duties of the SoS. Sure, stranger things have happened but this stuff here is legal idiocy…or illegal idiocy. Constitutionally, Georgia’s btw, is unlikely to allow a rule to trump a law. By law they elect a SoS who’s office enforces, among other things, election laws. More to the point the u.s. s.c. put the kibosh on various state boards just putting out enforceable rules all willy nilly. I was working for a couple of licensing boards when that ruling came down and our attorneys had some work to do going over licensing laws/rules to make sure they did not overstep (there is the MT code (laws) and the Administrative Rules (how the law is enforced) and boards cannot create rules that do more than the actual legislation allows. This election board is likely pretty similar, legally, to our licensing boards which is to say they cannot legislate as that is not their job nor were they elected to do such a job.
This one is not over, not even close to being over, and I suspect some, maybe all of these changes the board wants to make will end up in the round file. Even IF some were to be deemed Ok, they likely will have to wait until after the 2024 election-how can the poll workers, etc. be trained in time? You have a logistical problem here that can’t be solved with a rule change and a court Ok’ing the rule change-not this late in the game.
“More to the point the u.s. s.c. put the kibosh on various state boards just putting out enforceable rules all willy nilly.”
I think you’re forgetting that same “u.s. s.c.” has shown it’s not all that concerned of late in sticking to its own precedents.