SAVANNAH, Georgia (WSAV) – Georgia’s Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger on Monday defended the state’s new electoral law despite controversy and multiple lawsuits related to the new legislation.
Raffensperger says the law still allows early voting.
“We encourage and allow (now) an extra day for early voting so that we have 17 days earlier than the mandatory 16 days,” said Raffensperger. “Then any district that wants can vote on Sunday. With our number of days, we are at the top of all national comparison periods. “
He also defended part of the law that now requires a more explicit method of verifying the identity of a voter prior to voting, particularly with regards to requesting an absentee. It requires a driver’s license or state ID.
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“Also, there are people who are not absent or, when they are absent, know that everyone had a driver’s license number or a secure identification method that will help restore confidence,” Raffensperger said.
Looking ahead, the secretary said the ongoing speculation about the November 2020 election will further undermine confidence in the process.
He says the three hand counts and hundreds of man hours prove that the Georgia election results are correct and that the Dominion’s voting machines worked as they should.
“Answering questions with these ballot papers proved first and foremost that the machines were correct and that machines never switched votes,” said Raffensperger.
Raffensperger recently tweeted about threats concerns that are still being directed at election officials and poll workers.
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“It is really appalling when you consider that election workers, poll workers and election officers have been threatened,” he said. “This has happened in both red and blue counties. People were persecuted during the election. People need to understand that election workers live in your community. “
Raffensperger also responded to information that his family is still under threat – but says he is determined to run for a second term.
“We’ve talked about this as a family and we understand that there are always these elements out here,” he said. “What is really daunting is that we really need to hold our sides accountable. Our politicians need this personal integrity to hold their side accountable. “
Raffensperger was recently censored by the Georgia GOP, but he says there is more to be done in a second term. He said his office works daily to build trust in the electoral process and combat disinformation on social media.
