Peach Tree Times

Despite allegations of voter suppression leading up to Election Day, the midterm elections in Georgia saw record turnout of black voters as well as record early voting, according to Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger.

“Georgia voters came out in near presidential-level numbers. County election directors handled that demand with the utmost professionalism. They navigated a whole host of challenges and executed seamlessly. They deserve our highest praise,” Raffensperger said in a press release.

Turnout for the Georgia midterm elections was 52.7%, higher than the national average of 46.9%, Outkick reported. In 2021, Georgia's passage of the Election Integrity Act prompted accusations of voter suppression targeting black people, with President Joe Biden even calling the bill "Jim Crow 2.0." The legislation made some changes to existing voting laws, including enhancing ID requirements for absentee voting and regulating drop boxes.

Despite claims of voter suppression, the Georgia secretary of state reported 3,957,880 votes by the end of Election Day on Nov. 8, a “historic” record of Election Day votes, the Wall Street Journal Editorial Board reported.

The Editorial Board compares the record voting numbers to Georgia’s voting law from 2021, which Biden called “Jim Crow 2.0” and claimed the law would accomplish “two insidious things: Voter suppression and election subversion.” The Editorial Board writes Biden said, “the new law made it harder to vote by mail or drop box, with the clear goal of ‘longer lines at the polls.’ He [Biden] also warned of ‘threats’ and intimidation against election officials, and sowed doubt about future election outcomes, since the law made voting about ‘who gets to count the vote and whether your vote counts at all.’”

Sen. Raphael Warnock (D-GA) warned voters of “severe voter suppression” leading up to the Georgia primary in the summer, according to Fox News. Warnock criticized the Election Integrity Act of 2021 saying it will block black votes. Warnock ended up winning the Democratic nomination and faced Hershell Walker in the midterms where it is now headed to a runoff election on Dec. 6.

According to Georgia secretary of state voter data, 33.1% of the total number of ballots accepted were submitted by minority voters of black, Hispanic and Asian demographics. There were 2,537,210 ballots accepted, with 839,032 of those being minority ballots. Black Georgians cast 741,528 ballots, accounting for 29.2% of all accepted ballots in the state.

Gov. Brian Kemp, who recently won reelection, defeating Stacey Abrams, responded to Biden’s criticism of the Election Integrity Law of 2021 after signing the bill into law in March of 2021.

“It is obvious that neither President Biden nor his handlers have actually read SB 202, which I signed into law yesterday,” Kemp said in a press release. “This bill expands voting access, streamlines vote-counting procedures and ensures election integrity. There is nothing ‘Jim Crow’ about requiring a photo or state-issued ID to vote by absentee ballot – every Georgia voter must already do so when voting in-person. President Biden, the left and the national media are determined to destroy the sanctity and security of the ballot box. As secretary of state, I consistently led the fight to protect Georgia elections against power-hungry, partisan activists. As governor, I won’t back down from keeping Georgia elections secure, accessible and fair.”