After a very tense and historic election season, we are now seeing changes to voting laws proposed — and passed — in different states. New laws established in the state of Georgia, in particular, have caused an uproar.
This comes after the results of the 2020 presidential election were wrongfully refuted and contested by the sore loser of the election, feeding a false narrative to his supporters who believed his baseless claims. Misinformation was spewed out about the democratic voting process after the loss to current President Joe Biden. There was no voter fraud as former President Donald Trump claimed. The votes that took longer to count were those of early voting as in many states many were not able to be open and counted until the final polls closed.
Now we are seeing the consequences of those false voting claims. Both Georgia and Florida have passed restricting new voting laws making Georgia the first state that flipped blue to do so.
According to a New York Times Georgia voting law breakdown, some of the new obstacles voters will face is less time to request their absentee ballots, voters will need to provide more information, sending absentee ballot applications to all voters is illegal, limiting the number of drop boxes, and making it illegal to hand out food and water to those in voting lines.
All of these things are absurd. One would think they would find ways of making the voting process easier and more accessible to all communities.
Especially in today’s climate, the Black community is fighting to be heard and this new bill put in place in Georgia is limiting their opportunities to have their voice heard through their votes.
According to a New York Times Georgia voting law breakdown, some of the new obstacles voters will face is less time to request their absentee ballots, voters will need to provide more information, sending absentee ballot applications to all voters is illegal, limiting the number of drop boxes, and making it illegal to hand out food and water to those in voting lines.
Similar to Georgia, Florida would also be limiting the amount of drop boxes and the people who could pick them up, require more information to identify those voting through absentee voting. Additionally, all absentee ballots would have to be specifically requested. It would also build upon an already established law stopping people from providing “influential bias items” within 150 feet of voting locations.
All of these things seem not to be a big deal but, the voting format works so why change something that works?
What makes these new laws absurd is that they negatively impact specific communities. One would think they would find ways of making the voting process easier and more accessible to all communities.
The new laws primarily affect the black community, which was a key demographic for current president Joe Biden’s victory.
All these new information requirements are just tiresome and are just a way of making the voting process longer and confusing. Not only that but year after year we see on the news tremendously long voting lines especially in minority communities where people are in lines for hours. This is why it is hard to believe that people will not be able to be given basic necessities like food and water while they wait to exercise their fundamental right to vote.
The limitations of drop boxes would limit a form of voting by providing less places to drop off one’s vote. Limiting options makes it difficult to exercise one’s right. They would be making it harder, making people go out of their way to find a drop box among the limited amount provided.
If anything they should be placing more drop boxes to make sure as many people have easy access to drop off their vote and do not have to go far to do so.
It is also not a coincidence that this comes after absentee voting played a major role in President Joe Biden’s victory with many people wanting to stay safe and voting early. Most of the absentee votes were for Joe Biden as he encouraged more people to vote in this form to stay safe.
Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp may publicly say these new laws make it “harder to cheat,” after he caved to Trump’s baseless claims and the battleground state turned blue. Yet that is simply false. If it weren’t, why include a law making bringing basic necessities to someone in line a crime if not to discourage those who find themselves in long lines from voting?
The state of Georgia is now facing the consequences with sporting events such as the MLB All-Star game being pulled out of the state. Large companies and CEOs have also spoken out against the new voting laws.
Companies like Delta Air lines and Coca-Cola both condemned the new laws.
“We want to be crystal clear and state unambiguously that we are disappointed in the outcome of the Georgia voting legislation,” said Coca-Cola CEO James Quincy in a statement. “Additionally, our focus is now on supporting federal legislation that protects voting access and addresses voter suppression across the country. We all have a duty to protect everyone’s right to vote, and we will continue to stand up for what is right in Georgia and across the U.S.”
When speaking to CNN about previously labeling the new voting laws passed in Georgia as “racist,” Chip Bergh CEO and President of Levi Strauss & Co. said: “Voting is a very hard fought and hard one right for all americans and i think what we are seeing is a backlash to the record voter turnout in 2020 and the baseless false narrative of voter fraud. And these moves in the 47 states that are considering these legislations and the legislations that just passed in Georgia are trying to restrict voters’ access to the polls and it is disproportionately hurting black and brown communities.”
Let’s hope that outspoken corporate America is here to stay for many reasons, one being employees should have transparency with the companies they are working for and if voting rights are being threatened people need to know they have the support of companies they back.
People should know where large dominant companies in America stand because if they are able to back candidates with donations they should be able to support the public’s right to the democratic vote.
