Press Advisory: ACLU of Georgia to Testify at Randolph County Board of Elections & Registration Public Hearing
Prepared Remarks of Sean J. Young, Legal Director of the ACLU of Georgia
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE August 16, 2018
Media contact: Ana Maria Rosato media@acluga.org
ATLANTA – Tonight, Sean J. Young, Legal Director of the ACLU of Georgia, will deliver the following remarks at the Randolph County Board of Elections & Registration public hearing concerning the proposal to close the seven out of nine polling places in the county on the eve of the November general elections.
On Tuesday, the ACLU of Georgia sent a letter to the Randolph County Board of Elections & Registration demanding it reject the proposal because it is discriminatory, unjustifiable, and violates the Voting Rights Act of 1965.
Sean J. Young, Legal Director
ACLU of Georgia
Prepared Remarks
August 16, 2018
Randolph County Board of Elections & Registration
Randolph County Government Building
93 Front Street, Cuthbert, Georgia
6:00pm
“Members of the Randolph County Board of Elections & Registration, thank you for the opportunity to speak tonight. My name is Sean Young, and I am the Legal Director of the ACLU of Georgia, an organization dedicated to protecting the sacred, constitutional right to vote for all Georgians. We are here to express our strong opposition to the discriminatory proposal to eliminate 7 out of 9 polling places in Randolph County on the eve of the November elections. This proposal is reminiscent of Georgia’s ugly, discriminatory past, and that is where it needs to stay.
“Members of the board, if you care about our democracy and prefer to avoid unnecessary legal liability, we recommend that you reject this proposal.
“I want to make three points today.
“First, this proposal will have a discriminatory impact on African Americans and likely violates the federal Voting Rights Act. As you are well aware, Randolph County is a Black Belt county that is 60% African-American—twice the percentage as that of the State of Georgia.
Eliminating 7 out of 9 polling places in this county guarantees lower turnout among African Americans in this upcoming November election.