ATLANTA — All Voting is Local Georgia State Director Kristin Nabers issued the following statement in response to House Bill 1464, a wide-ranging anti-voter bill introduced Wednesday that would allow for more sham election reviews, cut grant funding that is necessary to run elections, and give the Georgia’s Bureau of Investigation the power to investigate elections:
“Georgia’s House Bill 1464 is the latest attempt to undermine our elections. Creating the potential for an endless cycle of sham ballot reviews feeds into the Big Lie and will continue to cast false doubt on our secure electoral process in Georgia. Supporters of this bill aim to deliberately sabotage future elections so they can hold onto power.
“Additionally, giving the GBI original jurisdiction over claims of election-related crimes, as written in this law, will lead to more voter intimidation and have a chilling effect on Georgia’s elections. This is an effort to silence our voices and subvert the will of the voters who turned out in record numbers in 2020.
“The bill would also drastically limit grant funding opportunities to local boards of elections, making it impossible to run elections smoothly. Georgia lawmakers need to come together to strike down this dangerous bill that would set counties up to fail, threaten voters, and give credence to the Big Lie.”
Background
The 40-page House Bill 1464 was presented by Georgia lawmakers Wednesday, less than two hours before it was heard in committee. Notable sections in the bill include a plan to prohibit outside grant funding to local boards of elections; this grant funding is essential for election administration. HB 1464 would also open ballots up for public inspection, which could lead to sham reviews as we’ve seen in other states. In addition, the Georgia Bureau of Investigations would be given original jurisdiction over claims of election-related crimes.