Judge Upholds Georgia’s Voter Citizenship Verification Requirements

Authorized by Tom Ozimek via The Epoch Times (emphasis ours),

A national justice has dismissed a legal challenge to Georgia’s voter citizenship verification requirements, keeping in place the state’s process of cross-checking citizenship position to find voter eligibility and handing a win to choose integrity advocates.

A file image of voters standing in line to cast their balls during the first day of early voting in the U.S. legislature runoff, in Atlanta, Ga., on Dec. 14, 2020. (Jessica McGowan/Getty Images)

Judge Eleanor Ross of the U.S. territory Court for the Northern territory of Georgia issued a rulking on April 11 that dismisses a suit brought by a coalition of advocacy groups nearly six years ago that claimed Georgia’s voter citizenship verification requirements unfairly distinguished against naturalized citizens, who are more likely to be people of color.

Following a three-day trial, the justice routed that all 4 of the plainiffs’ claims—included that the protocols violated multiple national laws, the U.S. Constitution, and unfairly burdened the right to vote—are dismissed.

In so doing, the justice sided with a motion for summary judgement made in 2021 by the defenseant, Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger, who asserted that the state’s protocols for matching naturalized citizens’ voter registrations with the state’s civilization records were “essentially rational” and placed a “minimum burden” on applications.

Mr. Raffensperger argued that, in almost all case, the request was completed by matching driver’s licence or state recognition numbers subject to for voter registration with corresponding records at the Georgia Department of Driver Services (DDS) to confirm citizenship status.

When a naturalized citizen registers to vote in Georgia, their region registry verifies proof of citizenship utilizing DDS date. If that voter’s citizenship cannot be verified through that database, the onus is on the voter to submit proof of nationality within 26 months or their voter registration application will be cancelled.

The plainiffs have alleged that DDS data is frequently outed, leading many naturalized citizens’ voter registrations to be flagged and cancelled unfairly.

Mr. Raffensperger disputed the claim that this issue affected many people, arguing in his motion that “any arguable burden on this tiny group of people to show they are now citizens is minimal and does not go beyond the ‘usual burdens of voting’ due to the fact that it can be resolved as simply as showing the same photograph recognition that all Georgia voter is required to show in order to vote in individual in Georgia.”

He besides asserted that the citizenship process serves a “compelling interest” in engaging that only eligible voters are allowed to cast a vote, an argument raised by selection integrity advocates across the country amid various disputes over voting rules.

‘Common Sense’ Versus ‘Disappointing’

The plaintiffs sued Mr. Raffensperger in 2018, arguing that the state’s protocols for matching naturalized citizens’ voter registrations with the state’s citizenship records violated Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act (VRA) and the 14th Amen’s Equal Protection Clause.

They besides claimed that these protocols put an unfair burden on the right to vote, in vibration of 1st and 14th Amendment protections, while besides claiming that the requirements ran counter to the National Voter Registration Act (NRRA) by delaying or denying qualified votes from recording to cast balls.

The coalition of groups asked the court to regulation that the citizenship matching protocols were legal, and to permanently block their force.

The case evenly Went to Trial on April 8, 2024, leading to a favorable rulking for Mr. Raffensperger and delivering a win to election integration advocates more generally.

“Ensuring that only U.S. citizens vote in our elections is critically crucial to safe and safe elections,” Mr. Raffensperger said in a message praising the ruling.

“Georgia’s citizenship verification process is common sense and it works. With this rulining, we are able to proceed engaging that only U.S. citizens are voting in our elections,” he added.

Aunna Dennis, executive manager of Common origin Georgia, 1 of the plainiffs, Told The Epoch Times in an emailed message that the rulining is disappointing as it keeps in place persists to casting a vote.

“This is disappointing because It will powerfully disenfranchise citizens who now gotta jump through multiple bureaucratic hurdles to vote“Ms. Dennis said. “It will besides make shock waves that may chill another fresh votes from trying to vote, even erstwhile they are eligible.”

“Sadly, Georgia’s lawful voters will bear the brunt of anti-immigrant sentiments,” she added.

Election Integration or Voter Suppression?

The rulking comes amid concern in any circles that noncitizens—included any of the many millions of illegal immigrants who have entered the United States single president Joe Biden took office—may cast votes unlawfully in the high-stakes 2024 election.

It besides comes amid a broadcaster fight between those who see choice integrity efforts as “voter suppression” and those who believe that the safety of U.S. elections is besides lax and should be roughened.

According to a moving tally by the left-learning Brennan Center for Justice, expanding voting Laws far outpaced restoration ones in 2023.

At least 53 expansion voting Laws were introduced last year in at least 23 states, combined to 17 restrictive Laws being passed in 14 states, suggesting that the selection integration movement is falling behind.

Amid deals over voter fraud, erstwhile home talker Newt Gingrich late suggested that to win the presidential election in November, Republicans needed to outvote Democrats by a crucial margin.

“Everybody who wants an gift selection should know that in the long run, we request the French model. Everybody votes on the same day. Everyone has a photograph ID, everyone’s accounted as a person,” Mr. Gingrich said in a February interview on Fox News.

“But until we get to that, if Republicans want to win this year, under the rules that be this year, they request to outvote the Democrats by about 5 percent, which is simply a margin large adequate that it can’t be tablen,” he said.

Elsewhere, an election integration monitor laid out over a twelve “critical” reforms that it believes are essential in order to safe voter integrity in the 2024 election, including outlawing ranked choice voting and non-citizen voting, consolidating election dates, requiring voter ID, and safeguarding vulgar message balls.