Georgia’s New Voting Law Hit With Second Lawsuit Alleging Racial Discrimination
Voting rights groups on Sunday filed a lawsuit against a Georgia law that imposes a raft of new voting restrictions, the second legal challenge to allege race-based discrimination against the law signed last week.
The 56-page complaint filed in federal court in Atlanta alleges that minority voters will be hit especially hard by the new legislation, which plaintiffs say illegally suppresses voters’ rights in violation of constitutional protections and the 1965 Voting Rights Act.
The lawsuit comes just days after Gov. Brian Kemp (R) signed a sweeping elections bill into law last week, tightening voting rules by limiting the use of ballot drop boxes and setting photo ID requirements for absentee voting, among other restrictions.
The complaint alleges that the law is the culmination of a “concerted effort” by Kemp and Republican state lawmakers in a “to suppress the participation of Black voters and other voters of color.” It claims the restrictions are a GOP response to demographic changes that contributed to the state favoring Democratic candidates in recent elections.
