Justice Department sues Georgia over voting law

Attorney General Merrick Garland accused Georgia Republicans of rushing through legislation he claims discriminates against African American voters. He announced Friday that the Department of Justice is suing the state over the voting law for alleged Voting Rights Act violations. Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger promised to defend the reforms, and Republican Gov. Brian Kemp accused the Biden administration of spreading misinformation about the law. Civil rights and election integrity groups have filed seven other lawsuits challenging the changes.

What did the bill change? The law requires ID for mail-in ballots, shortens the time frame for requesting a mail-in ballot, and removes some drop boxes in metro Atlanta, which has the largest African American voting population in the state. Georgia had installed 94 in the city during the 2020 election due to the coronavirus pandemic. The state can permanently use these boxes but limits the number to 23. Outside groups are prohibited from handing out food and water to voters within a certain distance of polling locations.

Dig deeper: Read Harvest Prude report in The Stew about what’s actually in the voting law.