Atlanta Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms issued an executive order Tuesday directing the city’s chief equity officer to implement “a series of actions to mitigate the impact of the state’s election bill.
Since Lance Bottoms does not have the authority to impact state election laws, her executive order will not change any of the new requirements in the bill.
The orders are mostly focused on
voter education and staff training through her office of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI). The DEI office will work to assist residents with information on the new voting laws and how to obtain the necessary identification to vote.“The voting restrictions of SB 202 will disproportionately impact Atlanta residents—particularly in communities of color and other minority groups,” Mayor Lance Bottoms said in a release. “This Administrative Order is designed to do what those in the majority of the state legislature did not—expand access to our right to vote.”
Lance Bottoms’ executive order will provide training to staff members on early, absentee and in-person voting to help communicate the information to city residents. The order will also add QR codes that will direct residents to voter registration information and other related information.
The bill Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp signed into law, adds restrictions to early and absentee voting as well as drop boxes and makes it illegal to provide food or water to those in line to vote. The law has already cost the state as Major League Baseball moved its All-Star Game from Atlanta to Denver.
Axios reported the move will cost Atlanta $100 million and would have been
a huge boost to the local community and help with the city’s COVID-19 recovery.The bill is one of more than 250 that have been proposed in 43 states to restrict voting. Many of the bills are based on former President Donald Trump’s false election claims of voter fraud. Meanwhile, some states have expanded voting including Virginia, Kentucky, and New York.