GOP is in panic mode
Donald Trump has been claiming the election was stolen from him for almost four years. He blames fraud, cheating Democrats, and anything else his tiny little brain dreams up. The funny thing is that when there is cheating, Republicans are typically involved. In Georgia, Republican legislators have introduced yet another bill to keep voters off the rolls. Voter registration used to be an automatic thing in Georgia. You got your driver’s license, and you were simultaneously registered to vote unless you chose to opt out. Republicans have changed that process so that you now must opt in. Insurance companies did this some time ago with uninsured motorist coverage, and many were surprised that they didn’t have coverage. The same is going to happen here. We grow accustomed to processes and think no more about it, which is what Republicans are banking on.
According to AP, the bill also makes it easier for Republicans to purge the voting rolls based on residency. This new bill is no accident. They don’t want Georgia blue again after the last election, so they’re resorting to tactics to ensure it doesn’t happen. While AP believes that many continue to support the “big lie,” this is typical Republican shenanigans. That’s why, even in blue states, Republicans continue to dominate the legislatures. They want what they want, and everyone else be damned. If we could find some way to get more Democrats in local government, things might be different, but until we do, we must ensure that every citizen in Georgia is aware of this change. This will especially impact young voters-who tend to be more liberal-and who may be getting their licenses for the first time.
A study by the Center for Election Innovation and Research revealed that active voters in Georgia rose to 98% during 2020, which was up from 78% in 2016. They believe this growth is linked to automatic registration. AP reported that Republicans claim the system “creates extra work for election officials” and “creates duplication,” both of which is a crock. Max Burns, chair of the Ethics Committee, who resides in Sylvania, stated: “The intent is certainly not to reduce voter registration, the intent is to clarify and make voter registration more accurate.” Sure, it is. Our system has worked all this time with no complaints from anyone. Since we had a liar in the White House, Republicans take that as their signal to change things to our detriment. This is yet another bad result of having Donald Trump in office.
Georgia Republicans have come up with all types of ludicrous reasons for the change. They claim that people should “affirmatively ask” to register and that “90% never went to vote anyway,” claimed Senate Majority Leader Steve Gooch, who is a Dahlonega Republican. These areas are notorious for racism. Dahlonega is 90% white. These people keep getting into office from poorly drawn maps that give them a majority of their “peers,” and they use that to keep others under control. This nonsense needs to stop. Every citizen has the right to vote; Republicans don’t have the right to take that away through trickery.
Shirley is a former entertainment writer and has worked in the legal field for over 25 years