New laws cause contention




Board of Elections Chairman Harrison Simpson explains the importance of understanding the new rules attached to Senate Bill 202 during the August 2 meeting.

Board of Elections Chairman Harrison Simpson explains the importance of understanding the new rules attached to Senate Bill 202 during the August 2 meeting.

Learning the new voting laws is proving to be a cumbersome task.

The Burke County Board of Elections met August 2 to further discuss the changes that Senate Bill 202 requires the panel to implement.

The bill, passed March 25, amends Chapter 2 of Title 21 of the Official Code of Georgia Annotated, relating to elections and primaries.

Chairman Harrison Simpson and board member Matthew Abrams did not see eye-toeye on going over the lengthy detailed pages.

Abrams explained that he thought it was unnecessary to review the tedious information until after a state conference takes place later this month.

Simpson explained that the changes to the law are already in effect.

“This is something that we have to deal with,” he said. “We have to know what is going on so that we can tell the people what is going on.”

Abrams asked for the issue to be tabled, but Simpson continued to discuss changes in identification requirements.

The law requires voters present a government-issued ID.

“If you don’t have it then they suggest that you can use other identification forms,” Simpson said and predicted that area high school students who don’t possess driver licenses will be affected by the new rules. “At one time, they could use their school ID, but now they can’t. If they don’t have a license (or ID card) then they can’t (vote),” he said.

Board Member Gladys Johnson suggested the board look into how the rules will be affected should the pandemic increase again. She also pointed out that there are a lot of changes regarding absentee voting. Simpson pointed out that if a voter is hospitalized and wants to vote by absentee ballot, but has no way to send it back, the clerk is authorized to pick it up at the hospital. The absentee ballot must be requested to be sent to the patient at the medical facility.

The new laws require Saturday voting but leave Sunday voting up to the local office.

“Here in Burke County, Sunday voting wasn’t good for us,” Simpson said. “We talked about it. We have a lot of churches in Burke County. I really don’t know if it will be worth it.”

The only way a person can vote at a polling location other than their designated site, is if there is not enough time to get to the correct polling location before it closes.

“Before you couldn’t do that at all,” Simpson said and suggested that the panel create a step-by-step list of what voters and poll workers can do.

“We need to make sure these laws fit the people in Burke County and make sure that everyone has the right to vote,” Simpson said and stated that even polka-dotted people should be able to vote. “I don’t care who they are.”

Assistant Chair Ed Burke and Board Member Carol Reeves were not present at the meeting.

A Board of Elections and Voter Registration Conference will be held at Jekyll Island the last week of August. The Burke County Board of Elections meets again September 7.

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