-
The Department of Justice is suing Georgia over a major election law passed this spring.
-
It’s the Department’s first major voting rights enforcement action of the Biden administration.
-
SB 202 made changes to nearly every aspect of Georgia’s elections and the DOJ alleges it discriminates against Black voters.
The Department of Justice is suing Georgia over a major GOP-backed election bill under Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act, Attorney General Merrick Garland announced at a Friday news conference.
“Our complaint alleges that recent changes to Georgia’s election laws were enacted with the purpose of denying or abridging the right of Black Georgians to vote on account of their race or color,” Garland said.
The lawsuit over Georgia’s voting law is the DOJ’s first major voting rights enforcement action of the Biden administration. It comes after Garland said in a recent speech that the DOJ will double its staff working on voting rights enforcement in the Civil Rights Division and commit to enforcing voting rights law.
The leader of the Civil Rights Division, Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke, is a prominent voting rights advocate who previously led the Lawyer’s Committee for Civil Rights Under Law.
Senate Bill 202, passed along party lines and signed into…
