[ad_1]
Candace Smith, an Atlanta attorney and longtime proponent of voting rights, experienced a voter challenge during the May 2024 state primary in Georgia. She quickly resolved the issue, but recognized that for others, encountering such challenges could be a significant barrier to voting.

In Georgia, citizen voter challenges have become a mass movement, with conservative activists challenging hundreds of thousands of voter registrations in recent years. This practice disproportionately affects voters of color, particularly Black voters. A newly-passed election law, SB 189, is likely to exacerbate the issue by giving greater power to those challenging voter registrations.

The evolution of voter challenge laws in Georgia dates back to the 1940s, with white supremacists mobilizing to prevent Black voters from accessing the polls. However, modern laws, such as SB 202, have given rise to mass challenges by allowing anyone to challenge an unlimited number of voter registrations.

Technology like EagleAI has enabled activists to comb through datasets and identify potential errors in voter registrations, leading to unjust challenges. These challenges, even when unsuccessful, create voter intimidation and confusion, wasting election officials’ time and adding stress to the election process.

The tactics used by election conspiracy theorists to challenge voter registrations are part of a broader effort to curb minority voter access and undermine election results. For voters of color, being challenged brings up painful reminders of historical discrimination. Advocates argue that these challenges threaten the very citizenship of affected voters and are reminiscent of past injustices like Jim Crow laws and slavery.

Photo credit
www.usatoday.com