Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp is “glad to deal” with backlash over his state’s changes to voter rules.
“I’m glad to deal with it,” Kemp told CNBC when asked about backlash from business leaders in Georgia and the U.S. over a set of sweeping new voter restrictions he signed into law last week. “If they want to have a debate about the merits and the facts of the bill, then we should do that.”
Black CEOs have urged companies to oppose the measures, which they contend are too restrictive, particularly for people in poor and minority communities. Calls have grown for some sporting events to boycott Georgia.
“Corporations have to stand up. There is no middle ground,” ex-American Express CEO Ken Chenault told CNBC on Wednesday.
Delta Airlines CEO Ed Bastian called the bill “unacceptable.”
Coca-Cola’s James Quincey told the news outlet the new law is “wrong.”
Merck CEO Ken Frazier, who is helping lead the effort among Black business executives to push corporate America to be more vocal in favor of voting rights, said Georgia was the “leading edge of a movement all around this country to restrict voting access.
“These kinds of bills have to be stopped in their tracks because you have to actually spend time reading this bill to understand what it does, and I think corporations ought to take a very strong stand in Georgia and every place else.”
Kemp in response told CNBC: “I would encourage these CEOs to look at other states that they’re doing business in and compare what the real facts are to Georgia.”
He also said it makes voting more secure in the state.
“There were counties last year that didn’t even have a drop box because it’s never appeared in the law before,” Kemp said.
“We have 159 counties in Georgia. One hundred and thirty-four of those counties under this legislation will be offering more hours of early voting, not less, so I would encourage these CEOs to look at these other states they’re doing business in, and compare what the real facts are to Georgia, and I think their focus will probably need to be in other places and not here,” he added.
Among the new rules in Georgia, the state aims to require a photo ID in order to vote absentee by mail; the rules also set an earlier deadline to request an absentee ballot, limiting where ballot drop boxes can be placed and when they can be accessed. Offering food and water to voters waiting in line will now be considered a misdemeanor crime.
Former President Donald Trump lauded the rules after the “travesty of the 2020 presidential election” while President Joe Biden said he was “worried” about the restrictions.
“There’s nothing more precious than the right to vote and speak up,” White House press secretary Jen Psaki told reporters, adding that she expected Biden to soon make a statement on the issue himself.
“It should not be harder; it should be easier to vote. We should not put limitations in place. People should be able to vote from home. They should be able to use absentee ballots. There should be a range of restrictions that are undone, not put back in place.”
Source: Newmax
