NEWS BRIEF: New threats to voter access in Georgia
‘Souls to the Polls’ targeted
Efforts to restrict voting rights in Georgia are gaining momentum after officials in Spalding County voted last week to eliminate early voting on Sundays. The decision “severely restricts an important voting option for all voters in Spalding County, but especially Black voters who have a historic community tradition called ‘Souls to the Polls’ to mobilize and vote on Sundays,” Aklima Khondoker of the voter advocate group New Georgia Project told CNN, adding that Black voters have long suffered from unequal ballot access in the county.
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Ben Johnson, the Republican chairman of the Spalding County board, claims other options exist such as mail-in voting and the ability to cast ballots on consecutive Saturdays within the state’s 17-day early voting period. theatlantavoice.com