Peach Tree Times

A $2 million advertising buy by opponents of the so-called For the People Act of 2021 argues that if passed by the U.S. Senate, the measure will change voter requirements for elections. The ad asks Georgia U.S. senators Raphael Warnock and Jon Ossoff to vote against the legislation.

For the People Act of 2021 would eliminate any requirements for voter identification even though many states require some form of ID at the polls or for a mail-in ballot. The bill would allow voters to sign affidavits instead of proving their identity with a photo ID (Section 1903).

H.R. 1 (For the People Act of 2021) passed the House, and the identical bill S.1 awaits a Senate vote. The legislation could largely reduce signature verification for absentee and mail-in ballots.  

The bill states, "a state may not require notarization or witness signature or other formal authentication [other than voter attestation] as a condition of obtaining or casting an absentee ballot." That leaves states the option to not have voters verify their signature for an absentee/mail-in ballot. 

In addition, the bill would require at least two election judges to dismiss a signature, which limits the capability for ballots to be dismissed based on signature verification. If a ballot is rejected, an individual does not have to appear in person to take care of the discrepancy but a phone verification will be permissible (Sec. 1621-1624).

The legislation will eliminate voter identification even though some polls say a large majority of Americans support voter ID laws. A recent Rasmussen poll showed 75% support for voter ID laws and support has increased in recent years. 

In 2018, 67% of voters said photo ID should be required before voting, and this year 89% of Republicans support voter ID, as do 60% of Democrats. Also, 77% of those polled are not affiliated with either major party.

The Restoration Action Group is fighting against the legislation and is running ads in three states, including Georgia. The $2 million dollar ad buy, title "Safeguards" asks residents to tell their senators to vote no on the bill.

“We must protect the integrity of elections in America,” Restoration Action Founder and President Doug Truax said in a release. “This legislation [Senate Bill 1] strips away critical safeguards necessary to ensure our elections are free, fair and transparent.”

The ad script reads: "Americans expect their elections to have safeguards. Only then can we have confidence the results are fair and accurate. Incredibly, some in Congress want to strip away those critical safeguards. No more voter ID. Signature verification on absentee ballots – virtually eliminated. And effectively allowing non-citizens to vote. The list goes on. Every illegal vote cancels someone’s legitimate vote – like yours. Tell your senators your vote matters. Tell them to vote no on Senate Bill 1." 

The ad is running in Georgia, Nevada and New Hampshire.

All 50 states require a valid signature for an absentee/mail-in ballot to be counted, according to Ballotpedia. One expert told the New York Times that signature matching is the best way to balance security and transparency and voter accessibility.

Aside from voter ID elimination, S.1  would also automatically register people to vote through a variety of methods and agencies and, some argue, could easily register non-citizens as the government would take a mass approach of registering voters. It also offers non-citizens protections from state or federal law for being registered to vote. 

The Foundation for Government Accountability said on its website that "S.1, the so-called For the People Act, would wrest control of elections away from their jurisdiction. Instead of closing elections loopholes that have eroded public confidence in elections, S.1 will expand on the many problems of the 2020 election and make them permanent fixtures."

"There are many reasons that S.1 is a problem for the country, but there are eight especially troubling provisions Americans should know about. These provisions disenfranchise eligible voters and usurp the control over elections to unelected bureaucrats in D.C.," FGA said in prepared remarks. "Without the opportunity for state legislative oversight, the Biden administration can bully and penalize state legislatures for budgeting, planning, and running elections at the local level, even if their actions are done with integrity, fairness and equal access for all."

The Georgia Senate recently passed and Gov. Brian Kemp signed into law a measure that requires photo ID when voting and requesting an absentee ballot. 

"It's not about disenfranchising voters. It’s not about overly burdening the electorate. It’s about efficiency, integrity, allowing the Georgia public to have confidence in the vote," Sen. Larry Walker (R-Perry), sponsor of the bill, said, the Peach Tree Times previously reported.

Three other bills have been introduced in Georgia to ensure the integrity of elections. HB531, Election Integrity Funding, which "provides that no election superintendents or boards of registrars shall accept private funding" and adds ID requirements for absentee ballots. The measure adds ID requirements for absentee-by-mail ballots, requiring driver’s license, state ID card, or voter ID to apply. Voters also will also need to provide ID numbers or last four digits of a Social Security number.

SB 202, which passed March 25, allows absentee ballot applications to only be mailed to eligible registered electors and will require election officials to check voter registration rolls twice a year to ensure ballots are only sent to citizens living in the state.

HB 461 will allow ballots from early voting absentee ballots to be tabulated, but not recorded, which, advocates say, will provide faster election results. The last action on the bill was Feb. 17, where it was sent to the House second readers.