Governor Brian Kemp says he does not have the power to change Georgia’s May 19 election date. Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger says neither does he.
Speaker of the House David Ralston and the 11 Republican members of Georgia’s Congressional delegation disagree and want it changed.
Meanwhile, Buzz Brockway, a veteran state legislator, says both Ralston and Raffensperger have “really smart lawyers” telling them they’re right.
Brockway served in the state legislator for eight years. He said, in a telephone interview last week, he has “great respect” for Ralston and that Raffensperger is a “man of honor.” Brockway said he served with both men.
Brockway said the differences beckon “the powers that be need to sit down and say what we are going to do.” The voters’ Constitutional rights and safety must be protected, and absentee ballots do both, he said.
Brockway said there are “a lot of safeguards in place” for absentee voting. He admitted in-person voting is slightly more secure because a photo ID is required.
He said the Secretary of State’s office has “done what they need to do ... continue to move forward and prepare.”
Raffensperger’s office mailed absentee ballot applications to all of Georgia registered voters Monday, March 30, in preparation with moving ahead with Georgia’s May 19 election cycle.
That cycle includes early voting beginning April 27, Saturday voting May 9, and election day May 19.
In at telephone interview with The News Observer Thursday, April 2, Raffensperger said, “Right now, our hands our tied. We have to move forward. It’s the law.”
Raffensperger believes a change in the law would require the vote of the state’s General Assembly. That is unlikely because the General Assembly session is suspended during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Ralston has disagreed, saying the governor’s emergency order gives the Secretary of State the power to delay May 19 voting.
He is quoted in several news sources as saying Raffensperger’s absentee voting initiative will be devastating to Republicans and conservatives.
Georgia’s Democratic Party has urged the Secretary of State to make absentee voting even easier by paying postage for the ballots.
Georgia’s two U.S. Senators and nine Republican members of the U.S. House of Representatives sent a letter to Raffensperger March 31 encouraging him to use all available flexibility and legal authority to delay the primary to the latest possible date in order to ensure the health and safety of Georgians.