Jim Crow Redux: Georgia GOP Governor Signs 'Egregious' Voter Suppression Law

Georgia's Republican Governor Brian Kemp has signed a sweeping elections bill that civil rights groups are blasting as the worst voter suppression legislation since the Jim Crow era. The bill grants broad power to state officials to take control of election management from local and county election boards. It also adds new voter ID requirements, severely limits mail-in ballot drop boxes, rejects ballots cast in the wrong precinct and allows conservative activists to challenge the eligibility of an unlimited number of voters.

Since the 2020 election, Republican state lawmakers have introduced over 250 bills in 43 states to limit voter access. The elections bill is "extremely egregious" in its restriction of voting rights, says journalist Anoa Changa. "They’re continuing to put processes in place that reinforce these narratives that ... have long existed within the Republican toolkit to help get their base fearful in terms of what might come in terms of Black voters and other voters of color."