Three weeks ago, as early voting began in the nationally-watched congressional special election in Georgia’s 6th District, lawyers representing the state chapter of the NAACP notified the secretary of state that Georgia’s voter registration law could bar persons from legally participating in a runoff election, in violation of federal law.
At issue is a state law that bars citizens who register to vote from participating in an election within 30 days of registration. The state, according to the letter sent to Georgia Secretary of State Brian Kemp March 30, treats runoff and special runoff elections as a continuation of the initial election, barring citizens from voting in a runoff who failed to clear the 30-day bar for the initial election but had been registered more than 30 days by the time a runoff took place.
