Stand Your Ground

As the midterm elections approach, it is of the utmost importance that all Georgians understand—and exercise—their right to vote. Brian Kemp, Georgia’s current Secretary of State, has engaged in voter suppression for years by purging voter files. This effort to disenfranchise voters is a hyper-partisan and cynical attempt by Kemp and other Republicans to hold political power by stopping Georgians from voting who do not support their narrow agenda rather than by appealing to the diverse population that makes up Georgia with programs and policies that serve all Georgians well.

While many Georgians may not be aware of how greatly voter suppression is impacting our community, Kemp has, throughout his tenure, engaged in excessive voter registration purges at a rate higher than almost any other state except Kansas. Kemp recently was involved in efforts to eliminate almost all the voting places in a rural majority African American county (Randolph County) in Southwest Georgia. He’s been so effective that our state has recently been in the national news. Kemp put over 53,000 voter registration forms on hold because they do not meet his office’s strict “exact match” standards that tend to affect people with hyphenated last names or unusually spelled names. Over 70% of these applications appear to be African-American. More specifically, Gwinnett County has been rejecting absentee ballots and ballot requests at a rate four times higher than the state and has the highest percentage of these “on hold” voter registrations of any county in Georgia. It’s particularly discriminatory against Asian-American voters, who are being rejected at the highest rate of all. Given Gwinnett is the most diverse county in the state and I represent the 3rd most diverse State Senate district in the nation, with over 120 languages spoken here, it’s clear that Kemp’s efforts are almost exclusively targeting minority voters to help his own standing in the elections. Given his now infamous anti-immigrant primary commercials, it’s no wonder Kemp is doing this, but it’s also un-American.

Kemp notoriously advocates for conservatives to “Stand Your Ground” in regards to gun laws, but in reality, it is the voters that need to stand our ground against corrupt voter suppression schemes. We need to stand our ground and demand the right to vote. We need to stand our ground and demand that the rights of women and the LGBTQ+ community are protected. We need to stand our ground and demand quality healthcare and education. We need to stand our ground and demand better public transportation and an economy that works for all Georgians.

Given the rampant voter suppression, it’s imperative to understand the various ways to exercise our right to vote. You can still vote even if your absentee ballot or application has been rejected. Please remind everyone on social media, at work, our places of worship, in our neighborhoods and communities, and even in our own families, that we have to stand our ground and vote. Here’s what you need to do:

1. Go to mvp.sos.ga.gov to check your voting registration status, find your polling location, check your mail-in application and ballot status for absentee ballots, and see sample ballots.

2. If you wish to mail an absentee ballot,
a. Request one from your county’s Board of Elections
b. Once you’ve received it, fill it out and submit it (for Gwinnett County, the address is 75 Langley Drive, Lawrenceville, GA)
c. After submitting your ballot, call your county registrar’s office immediately to verify that your vote was counted
d. November 2nd is the last day for a registrar to issue or mail absentee ballots

3. If you wish to participate in advanced (absentee in-person) voting
a. Be sure to take your absentee ballot with you
b. Voting begins on October 15th

4. If your absentee ballot or application was denied
a. Vote in person and vote early
b. Bring a photo ID that shows proof of citizenship

5. If you wish to vote on Election Day
a. It is on November 6th
b. Bring your Voter ID with a photo ID that shows proof of citizenship

This election is the most important election that any of us have participated in. This isn’t just another midterm cycle. This is where we decide whether or not we’re a land that values freedom and true representation. This is where we make a choice between fear or hope. If we lose, we’ve lost more than just an election—we’ve lost the battle for the soul of our democracy. Change doesn’t just happen; it’s made. So get up, stand your ground, and vote.