Georgia Senate Votes to Repeal No-excuse Absentee Voting
WASHINGTON, D.C. — Georgia Republicans moved to repeal no-excuse absentee voting on Monday, advancing Senate Bill 241 through the state Senate as part of a sweeping attack on voting rights in the state following the 2020 election. The bill would severely limit who can vote by mail, reversing a 2005 law — introduced by Republicans — that allowed Georgians to vote absentee without an excuse. The bill also adds an ID requirement to the absentee ballot request process.
Georgia saw record levels of voter turnout in 2020, aided in large part by the millions of voters who requested an absentee ballot for the general and runoff elections. Democrats in the Peach State called out the clear Republican efforts to limit access to the polls after losing a history-making election. Sen. Gloria Butler (D) summarized the repeal of no-excuse absentee voting quite succinctly: “[Republicans] passed this law. They didn’t use it. The Democrats did. The GOP lost. And because of that, they want to change the laws back.”
The legislation now heads to the Georgia House, where it is expected to pass. A similar bill, House Bill 531, which would also repeal no-excuse voting already passed the state House last week.