Voting Rights Watch: Urban GA counties don't ask feds for longer hours
More than 3 million voters are expected to cast ballots in Georgia today, the bulk of them in the big urban counties. Yesterday, two of those counties -- Clayton and Fulton -- decided against asking federal officials for approval to extend voting hours to meet the crushing demand. The AP:
GA Secretary of State Karen Handel insisted she was legally prohibited from extending voting hours by the Voting Rights Act (although nearby Southern states Florida and North Carolina, also covered by the Act, did so).
That led some Georgia counties to consider independently asking for federal approval to expand voting capacity, but they yesterday decided against it.
The Fulton County Board of Registration and Elections said Monday that the number of voting machines is enough to handle the crush of voters.The debate over extending voting hours broke out last week after Georgia voters reported waiting in line for up to eight and 12 hours during early voting.
Polls are normally open 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. in Georgia.
GA Secretary of State Karen Handel insisted she was legally prohibited from extending voting hours by the Voting Rights Act (although nearby Southern states Florida and North Carolina, also covered by the Act, did so).
That led some Georgia counties to consider independently asking for federal approval to expand voting capacity, but they yesterday decided against it.
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Chris Kromm
Chris Kromm is executive director of the Institute for Southern Studies and publisher of the Institute's online magazine, Facing South.