State continues to attempt to evade responsibility for an election system that infringes on Georgians’ constitutional rights
Hearing showed HB 316 does nothing to render lawsuit moot
ATLANTA – Today marked the first hearing of Fair Fight’s lawsuit regarding the unconstitutional mechanisms of voter suppression in Georgia. In this hearing, Fair Fight’s counsel highlighted why HB 316, this session’s voting bill, does not resolve the constitutional claims identified in the lawsuit.
“Opposing counsel’s claims that HB 316 addresses our concerns reflects a lack of understanding of the magnitude of unconstitutional suppression Georgia voters have faced,” said Allegra Lawrence-Hardy, lead counsel. “HB316 fails to adequately address our claims in the lawsuit. We look forward to moving forward with our lawsuit so that justice can be secured for Georgia voters.”
“In 2018, Georgia voters faced long lines, closed polling places, voting machines that flipped votes, and other systemic forms of voter suppression,” said Lauren Groh-Wargo, CEO of Fair Fight. “This was a clear infringement of voters’ constitutional rights, yet the state wants to abdicate their responsibility. Today’s hearing showed that no weak legislative bill can come close to fixing our democratic promise. We believe our standing will be upheld so that we can continue to support Georgia voters’ right to fair elections.”
Judge Jones, the presiding judge, has not yet ruled on the motion.
You can see a comparison of the lawsuit’s allegations to HB 316 here.