For immediate release: September 19, 2022
Press contact: Dorrie Toney, [email protected]
ATLANTA – Today, the ACLU of Georgia sent the Forsyth County Board of Elections a letter urging the county to reverse a September 6, 2022 decision to flag or remove 301 Forsyth County voters in defiance of state and federal law.
The sustained voter challenges were illegal because:
- the Board failed to follow the protections mandated by federal law, which include the prohibition against systematic voter removals within 90 days of a federal election;
- the Board ruled on these challenges in a hearing that disregarded the processes and standards set forth by state law, which include the requirement to assess each voter challenge individually; and
- the Board’s hasty and unconstrained removal of voters violated basic notions of fairness and due process.
“When elections officials sustain voter challenges without following the processes mandated by law, like the Forsyth Board did at its September 6 hearing, it diminishes the accuracy of our voter rolls and undermines citizens’ fundamental right to vote,” said Rahul Garabadu, Voting Rights Staff Attorney at the ACLU of Georgia. “The Board should reverse its decision and ensure that every eligible Forsyth voter’s voice can be heard this election.”
Actions such as those taken by the Forsyth Board wrongfully disenfranchise voters and are an attack on our democracy. The ACLU of Georgia will continue to monitor and challenge these unlawful actions in order to ensure the right to vote for all eligible Georgians.
