Current Events > 107K voters purged from Georgia voter rolls for not voting in previous election.

(+) Yeah! (+)

https://thehill.com/homenews/campaign/412195-georgia-purged-more-than-100000-people-from-voter-rolls-because-there-didnt

Georgia officials removed an estimated 107,000 people from voter rolls because they decided not to vote in prior elections, according to a new report.

An APM Reports analysis found the voters were removed under the state's "use it or lose it" law, which starts a process for removing people from voter rolls if they fail to vote, respond to a notice or make contact with election officials over a three-year period.

After that three-year span, those who don't vote or make contact with authorities in two elections can be purged from the voter rolls under the Georgia law.

Such laws, generally enacted by GOP governments, have been growing more common, with at least nine states now having them, according to APM Reports.

Voter suppression has become a big issue in the Georgia governor's race, where Republican Brian Kemp is running against Democrat Stacy Abrams. Abrams would become the first black woman to serve as a U.S. governor in history if elected.

Kemp is Georgia's secretary of state, and his office oversees elections. Abrams has argued that Georgia laws and Kemp's office have acted to suppress the votes of African-Americans in the state. Kemp says his office is following Georgia law and that he has acted to prevent voter fraud.

The two are locked in a tight race that could be decided by a relatively small number of voters.

The APM investigation concluded that many people struck from voter rolls under "use it or lose it" laws do not know that they have been dropped and are likely to be surprised if they are turned away from the polls on Nov. 6.

Officials who support the laws argue that the policy helps prevent voter fraud, saying that citizens in good standing who have not turned out to multiple elections most likely moved.

While cleaning up the registry is important. The time to do so is not a month before an election where people won't have time to fix the issue.
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how convenient that they waited until this very moment to do this.
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Fair.
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"Use it or lose it" is the worst policy I've ever heard of
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Could we jail this guy?
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VipaGTS posted...

how convenient that they waited until this very moment to do this.

Yeah this.

I agree with the idea but Jesus christ do it AFTER the election, not moments before the next one.
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Example #454,293 of why I don't know why I still consider myself a Republican anymore....
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TroutPaste posted...

"Use it or lose it" is the worst policy I've ever heard of

The policy could work. You need to do things tho.

1) notify people directly if they will be removed and let them know what to do to prevent that.

2) don't wait to right before an election.
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Tmaster148 posted...

While cleaning up the registry is important. The time to do so is not a month before an election where people won't have time to fix the issue.

Says they did this in July 2017 or so.
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Totally not trying to suppress voters guys. The Republicans are totally about fairness and equality for all
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In a perfect society everyone would be automatically registered to vote if they were a legal citizen and resident of the state
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I'll be really, really shocked if Georgia doesn't end up getting taken to court over voter suppression like NC last election by the end of all this.
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3 years is way too short a period too. It'd mean someone who intends to vote for president every election but nothing else would have to re-register every election. Surely a 5 year period makes more sense lol. Seems like more gerrymandering BS
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ultimate reaver posted...

I'll be really, really shocked if Georgia doesn't end up getting taken to court over voter suppression like NC last election by the end of all this.

But theres a good chance that theyll win the election because of it first.
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Tmaster148 posted...

TroutPaste posted...

"Use it or lose it" is the worst policy I've ever heard of

The policy could work. You need to do things tho.

1) notify people directly if they will be removed and let them know what to do to prevent that.

2) don't wait to right before an election.

I really don't understand why you would want to, other than for a nefarious reason
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ultimate reaver posted...

I'll be really, really shocked if Georgia doesn't end up getting taken to court over voter suppression like NC last election by the end of all this.

https://www.cnn.com/2018/10/12/politics/georgia-voter-lawsuit-brian-kemp/index.html

They just settled a suit in 2015 for the same thing.

https://www.ajc.com/news/state--regional-govt--politics/georgia-settles-federal-lawsuit-alleging-blocked-thousands-minority-voters/4M2dMAHDRvC8fLYoV01fxN/
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Yea i see no reason why this is even necessary. We have so many weird laws with regard to how often and when you can register to vote and they all just seem to do more to make it more difficult to vote than foster MORE voting...i mean, i understand why certain counties and districts do it and want it this way...I'm just saying it shouldn't be allowed.
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Maybe these people should show they actually vote. This isn't suppression. Cleaning up the registry is something every state does. And it wasn't done a month in advance. Plenty of time to register if they were really gonna vote for a change. Not much of a story here
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__B0xxY2J0sHBK_ posted...

Maybe these people should show they actually vote. This isn't suppression. Cleaning up the registry is something every state does. And it wasn't done a month in advance. Plenty of time to register if they were really gonna vote for a change. Not much of a story here

I don't see anything in the Constitution or Bill of Rights about purging voter rolls.
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TroutPaste posted...

Tmaster148 posted...

TroutPaste posted...

"Use it or lose it" is the worst policy I've ever heard of

The policy could work. You need to do things tho.

1) notify people directly if they will be removed and let them know what to do to prevent that.

2) don't wait to right before an election.

I really don't understand why you would want to, other than for a nefarious reason

Not everyone remembers to let the state know they are registered to vote in a new state because they moved there.

Also people die and don't get removed from rolls immediately either.

It's nice bookkeeping, but there's a time to do bookkeeping and it will never be right before an election.
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I really can't imagine why someone would support this policy regardless of when its done tbh. You shouldn't lose your registration just because you didn't find any compelling reason to vote in the last election.
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Jaded_Dragon posted...

__B0xxY2J0sHBK_ posted...

Maybe these people should show they actually vote. This isn't suppression. Cleaning up the registry is something every state does. And it wasn't done a month in advance. Plenty of time to register if they were really gonna vote for a change. Not much of a story here

I don't see anything in the Constitution or Bill of Rights about purging voter rolls.

It's almost like the Constitution doesn't apply here. Nobody is being stopped from voting
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lmao it's Brooklyn 2016 all over again

This country is so crooked
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Seems like another good reason to always vote.
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"Why dont vote black people vote Republican?"

Well you dont even want them voting in the first place so
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Balrog0 posted...

I really can't imagine why someone would support this policy regardless of when its done tbh. You shouldn't lose your registration just because you didn't find any compelling reason to vote in the last election.

I mean I don't support this per say. But if we are going to do this it shouldn't be right before an election.

Frankly we should be auto registering people to vote.
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Tmaster148 posted...

Not everyone remembers to let the state know they are registered to vote in a new state because they moved there.

Also people die and don't get removed from rolls immediately either.

If someone moved to a different state, they won't be voting in their previous one. If someone died, they won't be voting either.

I fail to see the problem here.

the problem is missing one election isn't the same as dying.
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Darklit_Minuet posted...

Tmaster148 posted...

Not everyone remembers to let the state know they are registered to vote in a new state because they moved there.

Also people die and don't get removed from rolls immediately either.

If someone moved to a different state, they won't be voting in their previous one. If someone died, they won't be voting either.

I fail to see the problem here.

It's a bookkeeping thing. There's no real harm, but a lot don't like there's dead people registered to vote.
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Republicans going to Republican
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__B0xxY2J0sHBK_ posted...

Jaded_Dragon posted...

__B0xxY2J0sHBK_ posted...

Maybe these people should show they actually vote. This isn't suppression. Cleaning up the registry is something every state does. And it wasn't done a month in advance. Plenty of time to register if they were really gonna vote for a change. Not much of a story here

I don't see anything in the Constitution or Bill of Rights about purging voter rolls.

It's almost like the Constitution doesn't apply here. Nobody is being stopped from voting

...except for the people that didn't take the time to vote in a local election during an odd number year where many times there's only one person on the ballot anyway?
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Kemp belongs in prison.
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Tmaster148 posted...

Balrog0 posted...

I really can't imagine why someone would support this policy regardless of when its done tbh. You shouldn't lose your registration just because you didn't find any compelling reason to vote in the last election.

I mean I don't support this per say. But if we are going to do this it shouldn't be right before an election.

Frankly we should be auto registering people to vote.

it's just that there are other ways of ameliorating those issues that are less likely to impact legitimately registered voters

e.g. https://www.nass.org/sites/default/files/reports/nass-report-voter-reg-maintenance-final-dec17.pdf

I mean idk why I'd expect a god damn statewide elected official whose job it is to oversee the voting process to like read something about how you can oversee the voting process but this shit is out there
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UnfairRepresent posted...

VipaGTS posted...

how convenient that they waited until this very moment to do this.

Yeah this.

I agree with the idea but Jesus christ do it AFTER the election, not moments before the next one.

I gotta say I agree with this. This looks calculated to prevent votes. I can understand an expiration date, but it shouldnt be weeks before the next election.
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Darklit_Minuet posted...

If someone moved to a different state, they won't be voting in their previous one. If someone died, they won't be voting either.

Not true. I have a cousin who moved states and still votes in her old state. She cares more about home state politics than the state she lives in now
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Why are you guys assuming the 107k would have been voting Democrat?
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monkmith posted...

__B0xxY2J0sHBK_ posted...

Jaded_Dragon posted...

__B0xxY2J0sHBK_ posted...

Maybe these people should show they actually vote. This isn't suppression. Cleaning up the registry is something every state does. And it wasn't done a month in advance. Plenty of time to register if they were really gonna vote for a change. Not much of a story here

I don't see anything in the Constitution or Bill of Rights about purging voter rolls.

It's almost like the Constitution doesn't apply here. Nobody is being stopped from voting

...except for the people that didn't take the time to vote in a local election during an odd number year where many times there's only one person on the ballot anyway?

Sounds like they should have either practiced their right to vote or reapply. Self accountability does matter
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Funbazooka posted...

Why are you guys assuming the 107k would have been voting Democrat?

I don't think anyone is, but black people in GA tend to vote democrat and they are "purged" at 3x the rate of white voters.

Tmaster148 posted...

Darklit_Minuet posted...

Tmaster148 posted...

Not everyone remembers to let the state know they are registered to vote in a new state because they moved there.

Also people die and don't get removed from rolls immediately either.

If someone moved to a different state, they won't be voting in their previous one. If someone died, they won't be voting either.

I fail to see the problem here.

It's a bookkeeping thing. There's no real harm, but a lot don't like there's dead people registered to vote.

Here's the issue with that. If "Tim Smith" passed away last year and they want to remove him from the registry, let's say there are 8 "Tim Smith's" in the registry, if they have trouble discerning which Tim Smith they need to remove, do you know what they do? They remove all 8.

The crosscheck program can also remove people that share a last name and birthday and it misidentifies fraud at an astonishing 99%.

Then you have people getting purged due to clerical errors that are no fault of their own, which is... wow.

There's no reason to remove someone who is alive but hasn't voted in the last 3 years. The concept is ridiculous. It's a fundamental right of Americans. I find it absolutely hypocritical when someone is fine with voter ID laws and the clearing of the voter rolls, yet will say the 2nd amendment should never be reviewed or changed.
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Jaded_Dragon posted...

Here's the issue with that. If "Tim Smith" passed away last year and they want to remove him from the registry, let's say there are 8 "Tim Smith's" in the registry, if they have trouble discerning which Tim Smith they need to remove, do you know what they do? They remove all 8.

I would think you would be going off of just more than first name and last name. But I can't say I know the process actually used well enough.
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__B0xxY2J0sHBK_ posted...

monkmith posted...

__B0xxY2J0sHBK_ posted...

Jaded_Dragon posted...

__B0xxY2J0sHBK_ posted...

Maybe these people should show they actually vote. This isn't suppression. Cleaning up the registry is something every state does. And it wasn't done a month in advance. Plenty of time to register if they were really gonna vote for a change. Not much of a story here

I don't see anything in the Constitution or Bill of Rights about purging voter rolls.

It's almost like the Constitution doesn't apply here. Nobody is being stopped from voting

...except for the people that didn't take the time to vote in a local election during an odd number year where many times there's only one person on the ballot anyway?

Sounds like they should have either practiced their right to vote or reapply. Self accountability does matter

that argument would have meaning if voting and reapplication didn't waste so much damn time.
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monkmith posted...

__B0xxY2J0sHBK_ posted...

monkmith posted...

__B0xxY2J0sHBK_ posted...

Jaded_Dragon posted...

__B0xxY2J0sHBK_ posted...

Maybe these people should show they actually vote. This isn't suppression. Cleaning up the registry is something every state does. And it wasn't done a month in advance. Plenty of time to register if they were really gonna vote for a change. Not much of a story here

I don't see anything in the Constitution or Bill of Rights about purging voter rolls.

It's almost like the Constitution doesn't apply here. Nobody is being stopped from voting

...except for the people that didn't take the time to vote in a local election during an odd number year where many times there's only one person on the ballot anyway?

Sounds like they should have either practiced their right to vote or reapply. Self accountability does matter

that argument would have meaning if voting and reapplication didn't waste so much damn time.

Then don't do it. You just don't get to complain about it later
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It's amazing how nakedly the GOP is trying to steal this election, and also how they're absolutely going to get away with it because they will never face consequences for any of their actions.
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Jaded_Dragon posted...

I don't think anyone is, but black people in GA tend to vote democrat and they are "purged" at 3x the rate of white voters.

So in other words, you're assuming these are Democrat voters.
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fire_bolt posted...

Seems like more gerrymandering BS

No shit.

The US is a shithole.
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god damn man. the corruption is non stop
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Both sides are equally bad

Both sides
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Nice to see the freedom loving Republicans here are totally fine with undermining democracy to win elections.

Never change guys
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The Great Muta 22 posted...

Nice to see the freedom loving Republicans here are totally fine with undermining democracy to win elections.

Never change guys

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Husted_v._Randolph_Institute

Husted v. A. Philip Randolph Institute, No. 16-980, was a case before the Supreme Court of the United States regarding Ohio's voter registration laws.[1] At issue was whether federal law, 52 U.S.C. 20507, permits Ohio's list-maintenance process, which uses a registered voter's voter inactivity as a reason to send a confirmation notice to that voter under the National Voter Registration Act of 1993 and the Help America Vote Act of 2002. If the mail is returned, the voter is stricken from the rolls, a practice called voter caging. The Court ruled in a 54 decision that Ohio's law did not violate federal laws.[

The decision, issued in June, allows Ohio to continue pruning its voter list prior to the 2018 election cycle, as well as supporting similar approaches used in six other states.[13] This approach has been criticized by analysts because it has a greater effect on minorities or others that would normally vote as a Democrat, thus giving Republicans an edge in this upcoming election.[14][4] Several other states have indicated that they would likely adopt similar language as Ohio's should the Court find in favor of the state.[15]
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Was gonna say the "makes sense in general but do it AFTER the election" thing, but looks like everyone's already pointed out why that's a non-issue here. Because the actual purge was done over a year ago, and it's simply that the media is choosing to make a big deal about it just before the election.
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