Voting rights advocates in Georgia are asking the state court to dismiss a lawsuit filed by local Republicans that could affect more than 5,000 voters for the upcoming Presidential election.
Lawyers for the Advancement Project, Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law, the Southern Poverty Law Center, NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund, and Arnold & Porter filed a motion to intervene in a lawsuit filed by the Dekalb County Republican Party and an activist seeking to
force members of the DeKalb County Board of Registration and Elections to hold challenge hearings that could remove more than 5,000 voters from the rolls ahead of the election.How The Republicans’ Lawsuit Could Impact Georgia Voters
The Republican’s lawsuit is pending in state court. The lawyers, representing the Georgia State Conference of the NAACP, New Georgia Project, Georgia Coalition for the People’s Agenda, A. Philip Randolph Institute, Common Cause Georgia, and League of Women Voters of Georgia, hope the courts will dismiss the suit with the motion they have filed.
“So far, DeKalb County election officials have applied the law correctly. They have declined to convene challenge hearings and they have rebuffed the petitioners’ allegations that thous
ands of voters, many of whom are voters of color, are invalidly registered,” a joint press release from the organizations representing the voting rights advocates reads. “If allowed, public challenge hearings could disrupt the administration of the November election and create chaos by causing the removal of voters on the eve of Election Day–-perhaps after early voting has started.”According to attorneys, the motion to intervene intends to head off any purge proceedings before any voters are removed and the need to bring a National Voting Registration Act action if federal court arises.
“This last-minute attempt to purge more than 5,000 Georgia voters is simply a vehicle to sow chaos to undermine our election process,” said Judith Browne
Dianis, executive director of Advancement Project. “Demanding that DeKalb County hold public challenge hearings would give partisan operatives an opportunity to publicly air trumped up charges of illegal voting–-when in fact the petitioners are attempting to suppress the vote in a predominantly Black county.”RELATED CONTENT: Survey Reveals Five Distinct Political Groups Among Black Voters