SB 222 criminalizes county workers and continues the Georgia right-wing legislature’s shameful legacy of enacting anti-voter bills over the objections of experts and elections officials
ATLANTA — Today, Brian Kemp continued his long-time legacy of voter suppression by signing SB 222, the Georgia Governor’s latest effort to undermine election administration by criminalizing county employees and taking away their ability to innovate to fund the growing cost of elections.
This signing comes as the Georgia legislature passed SB 222 over the objections of election experts, county officials, and election workers. SB 222 threatens county workers with felony charges, at least a $10,000 fine and no less than one year in jail in an environment where county election budgets are strained due to rising costs, new unfunded mandates from the State, and relentless legislative attacks from state officials.
The bill signing follows the enactment of anti-voter bill SB 202, which added new and costly burdens for election officials and voters and triggered a national trend of anti-voter legislation in states nationwide. Kemp’s signature on SB 222 adds to his long, unapologetic record of creating new expenses and burdens for counties while hampering voter access and election administration.
Fair Fight Action Executive Director Cianti Stewart-Reid released the following statement:
“It’s no surprise that Brian Kemp signed yet another anti-voter bill in the state of Georgia, further solidifying his position as the vote-suppressor-in-chief of modern elections. Instead of heeding the calls of elections workers, county officials, and experts, Kemp enacted a bill that criminalizes the public servants who run our elections and denies them desperately needed funds that keep our voting system functioning.
No one deserves jail time for doing their job. Fair Fight Action will continue to fiercely advocate for more support for election workers, county officials, and voters across the state of Georgia, and we will be there to help them navigate this harmful new law. It’s far past time the Georgia state legislature started protecting our elections rather than doing everything in their power to upend them.”
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