The Jolt: Raffensperger, Kemp shoot down proposed paper ballot bill

Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger opposes a proposed state Senate bill that would allow in-person voters to choose paper ballots instead of using Georgia’s Dominion touchscreen voting computers.

Raffensperger joined Gov. Brian Kemp, himself a former secretary of state, in resisting a switch to paper ballots. The movement caught fire with former President Donald Trump loyalists amid the rash of election fraud lies that followed his 2020 defeat.

“Adding one more thing on our poll workers’ plate — solely based on misguided theoreticals — will sow confusion, add to longer wait times and increase the need for additional staff and adjudication panels,” Raffensperger told the AJC’s Mark Niesse.

Credit: Alyssa Pointer/AJC

Credit: Alyssa Pointer/AJC

Raffensperger said 99% of Georgians reported no problems at the polls in 2022. He added voters who want to use hand-marked paper ballots can take advantage of absentee ballots to cast a vote by hand.

He further said that the state’s elections are secure and called claims of potential vulnerabilities to hacking speculative.

Raffensperger’s comments came a day after Senate Ethics Chairman Max Burns, R-Sylvania, who oversees elections legislation in the Senate, proposed the paper ballot. The measure will be discussed during a state Senate hearing on election security on Nov. 1.

Hand-marked ballots have gained popularity with an odd alliance of pro-Trump conservatives and some election transparency advocates who worry the state’s voting machines could be vulnerable to security breaches.

Lawmakers could still move forward with the measure despite Raffensperger’s opposition. But without Kemp’s support, the legislation is doomed.

“Georgians already have access to hand-marked paper ballots through no-excuse absentee balloting by mail,” Kemp told the AJC for a story first reported on Tuesday. “Multiple processes for in-person voting will inevitably lead to longer polling place wait times, poll worker confusion, and delays in election results.”

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Credit: Natrice Miller/AJC

FERGUSON FLIPS. Rep. Jim Jordan lost his second vote for U.S. House speaker Wednesday, garnering less support than he received the day before.

Georgia U.S. Rep. Drew Ferguson was among four Republicans who switched to other candidates after voting for Jordan, an Ohioan, during the initial round of balloting on Tuesday. Meanwhile, two GOP members who voted against Jordan in round one decided to back him. He also gained a vote from a lawmaker who had been absent during Tuesday’s vote.

That represented a net loss of one vote, bringing Jordan’s supporters to 199 on Wednesday. He needs support from 217 of 221 Republicans to claim the speakership.

Ferguson, who lives in The Rock, voted for Majority Leader Steve Scalise. He did not explain the switch.

Ferguson’s flip angered far-right Republicans, who flooded his office with angry calls. Georgia conservative activist Debbie Dooley pledged to support a primary challenger in hopes of unseating Ferguson in 2024.

Dooley also criticized Ferguson in an email to her vast mailing list by citing accusations the lawmaker voted illegally in 2022, a matter still under investigation.

A third vote is expected today.

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Credit: Jason Getz/AJC

LISTEN UP. The state House Democratic caucus has a notable dynamic as the war in Israel intensifies, with both state Rep. Ruwa Romman, the General Assembly’s first Palestinian-American, and state Rep. Esther Panitch, the Capitol’s only Jewish member, in its freshman class.

Romman, D-Duluth, joined the Politically Georgia podcast Wednesday to discuss the role she’s been thrust into as a young first-term lawmaker navigating the international crisis. Her grandparents were Palestinian refugees who settled in Jordan and she still has family in the West Bank.

“My initial reaction was shock,” Romman said. “And that went quickly to, what does my role even look like here? If I was ready to deal with international affairs I would have run for Congress. … there is no playbook for somebody like me.”

Credit: Natrice Miller/AJC

Panitch, D-Sandy Springs, will join the podcast today to discuss her perspective and experience since last week’s attacks on Israel. That episode will post this afternoon and we’ll share details in tomorrow’s Jolt as well.

Have a question for the show? Call our 24-hour Politically Georgia Hotline at 404-526-2527 and we’ll answer it on our Friday episode.

Listen and subscribe at Apple Podcasts, Spotify or Google Podcasts.

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Credit: Arvin Temkar/AJC

LOEFFLER GOES LOCAL. Every year is an election year somewhere in Georgia. So one of your Jolters has compiled a list of the 2023 local races to watch heading into next month’s elections, from Brookhaven to Savannah.

Beyond the candidates, another familiar Georgia political figure is playing a prominent role in the coming elections. Former Republican U.S. Sen. Kelly Loeffler and her Greater Georgia organization, a 501(c)(4) voter engagement group that launched in 2021, is planning a major text campaign to turn out conservative voters in competitive races.

Along with mayor’s races in Brookhaven and Savannah, Greater Georgia’s list includes contests in Johns Creek, Roswell, Chamblee, Peachtree Corners, Jonesboro, Tyrone and Fayetteville.

Keep us posted if you hear from them.

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Credit: Bob Andres/AJC

LEWIS’ LEFTOVERS. Failed U.S. Senate hopeful Herschel Walker isn’t the only former Georgia candidate asked to explain his lingering yet robust balance from money raised during past campaigns.

The Federal Elections Commission sent a letter last month to the campaign of late Congressman John Lewis after recent filings showed nearly $200,000 in Lewis’ account. The longtime congressman and civil rights icon died in July 2020.

“Your most recent report discloses a significant amount of residual cash on hand,” the letter said. “Please explain the committee’s intended use of the residual campaign funds.”

The John Lewis for Congress campaign committee responded this week, saying the leftover funds were being disbursed slowly and mainly to charitable organizations. The committee’s other expenses are largely administrative, the message to the FEC said.

The Lewis campaign committee said it plans to stay the course until the balance is exhausted or until there is a decision to change the committee’s mission, which would require additional paperwork.

The campaign recently reported a $5,000 donation to U.S. Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee’s campaign and a $1,365 payment to the Perkins Coie law firm. Jackson Lee is a Texas Democrat.

Lewis’ campaign committee had $178,894 in cash on hand at the end of third quarter.

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TODAY IN WASHINGTON:

President Joe Biden addresses the nation at 8 p.m. on U.S. involvement in Israel and Ukraine.
The U.S. House may take another vote toward electing a speaker.
The Senate is in session but has no votes scheduled.

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SUN SPOT. The solar power maker Qcells finished an expansion of its Dalton factory, part of a $2.5 billion plan first announced in January.

Democrats have sought to make the company the poster child for President Joe Biden’s incentive-laden climate change bill, to the frustration of key Republicans.

Biden indicated over the summer he would soon visit a QCells facility. Those plans now seem uncertain. State officials say they aren’t aware of any pending visit, and a QCells executive refused to comment.

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Credit: Alyssa Pointer/AJC

NEWS EMPIRE GROWS. The Courier Herald Publishing Company, which has been on a buying spree of weekly newspapers across the state for the last few years, has picked up its largest title to date — the Albany Herald.

The new investment is welcome news for southwest Georgians, who rely on the Albany Herald, which publishes daily, and many of the dozen-plus community papers the company owns for their local news. Among the newspapers in the group Albany joined are the Sparta Ishmaelite, the Manchester Star-Mercury, The Meriwether Vindicator, and the company flagship the Dublin Courier Herald.

The Dublin-based company’s president is Griffin Lovett. The chairman is a familiar face to nearly any Jolt reader — DuBose Porter, former House minority leader and Georgia Democratic Party chair.

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Credit: Jim Gaines

FULTON COMMISSION WEIGHS IN. The Fulton County Board of Commissioners on Wednesday followed the Atlanta City Council’s lead in voicing support for Israel in the Jewish nation’s war with Hamas.

Commissioners proclaimed Wednesday as “Stand with Israel Day” during a commission meeting, the AJC’s Jim Gaines reports. Dov Wilker, Atlanta regional director for the American Jewish Committee and national director for Black-Jewish Relations, accepted the proclamation.

The Atlanta City Council passed a resolution in support of Israel on Monday.

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Credit: Courtesy photo

DOG OF THE DAY. Halloween is one of The Jolt’s favorite holidays, so we’re bringing you Alvin the Black Cat as an early Halloween treat.

Alvin is one of three black cats who call Lee and Paul Schmidt their people. The entire spooky crew lives in Santa Fe, New Mexico, where they’ve remained loyal Jolt readers from thousands of miles away. Among Alvin’s favorite treats are his many cat toys and watching birds out the window. We’re hoping the bird watching doesn’t turn into a trick, but ‘tis the season.

Send us your dogs of any political persuasion and location, and cats on a cat-by-cat basis, to patricia.murphy@ajc.com, or DM us at @MurphyAJC.

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AS ALWAYS, Jolt readers are some of our favorite tipsters. Send your best scoop, gossip and insider info to adam.vanbrimmer@ajc.com, patricia.murphy@ajc.com, tia.mitchell@ajc.com and greg.bluestein@ajc.com.