How Georgia's new voting law affects the Senate runoff

Georgia's election law that took effect last year means at least one major change for voters in the Senate runoff race between Democratic incumbent Raphael Warn

Georgia's election law that took effect last year means at least one major change for voters in the Senate runoff race between Democratic incumbent Raphael Warnock and Republican Herschel Walker: They'll be heading back to the polls a lot sooner.

The law, Senate Bill 202, signed by Republican Gov. Brian Kemp in March 2021, cut in half the time allowed between a general election and a runoff election — drastically shortening the period during which many voters must request, receive and cast ballots. The law's narrowed time frame also effectively cuts the early in-person voting period, from a minimum of 16 days in 2020 to a minimum of 5 in 2022, while existing rules have ensured almost no new voters will be eligible to vote in the runoff.

Proponents of the bill's provisions on runoffs argue that cutting the period eases a long and arduous process for everyone involved. The law's authors even wrote into the bill that "the lengthy nine-week runoffs in 2020 were exhausting for candidates, donors, and 120 electors." Other supporters, including Gabriel Sterling, the chief operating officer in the Office of the Georgia Secretary of State, note that before 2013, the state's runoff period was four weeks and that the elections ran without problems.

"This is not the first time we've had to do this," Sterling said at a news conference last week. "This is not that unique."

But voting rights advocates, both in Georgia and around the country, say the new law's changes present challenges.

https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/2022-election/georgias-new-voting-law-affects-senate-runoff-rcna57152


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