Wouldn’t it be great if no hurdles to voting were falsely erected in the name of election security, no partisan gerrymandering was allowed, and we could get big money out of politics? Wouldn’t it be great if states took seriously their constitutional responsibilities to run fair elections and ensure our votes were counted and protected? Since November, the Republican-controlled Georgia legislature has proposed draconian and unnecessary bills designed to thwart citizens at the ballot box, all under the guise of restoring public confidence.
We likely can’t stop their dastardly plans this year, but there is still hope at the national level for protecting our federal elections through HR1, the For the People Act. Wouldn’t it be great if some U.S. house members from Georgia stopped perpetuating lies about our elections and started supporting democracy for all of us? Instead, they unashamedly stack the deck in their favor. Yes, both sides have been guilty of chicanery; that doesn’t make it right. Free and fair elections are at the heart of our democracy.
Thankfully, Congress and not the states has responsibility over federal elections. HR1 will establish much needed rules to make voting more uniform, accessible, and fair for ALL Americans. There’s a lot to unpack in HR1, but only because so much needs to be done to undo the damage being perpetrated on us by states in the false name of restoring voter confidence that was never lost. Tell your representative in Congress to support HR1, for you and all Georgians.
Phil Tomporowski
Athens
Athens, GA