Schatz Calls for Investigation of Voter Suppression

U.S. Senators Brian Schatz (D-Hawai‘i) and Cory Booker (D-N.J.) have called on the Department of Justice to investigate numerous reports of possible voter suppression in the gubernatorial election in Georgia.

“The Department of Justice still has the authority and the obligation to enforce the Voting Rights Act and protect the right to vote,” the senators wrote.“In the case of Georgia’s election, the DOJ should ensure that all votes are counted and that voters have a meaningful opportunity to ensure their absentee and provisional ballots are counted; and conduct a thorough investigation into the potential voting rights abuses that have been reported before, during, and after the election.”

In their letter to Assistant Attorney General Eric Dreiband, the senators outlined measures the state has taken in recent years to slow the pace of registering new voters, purge voter rolls, eliminate polling places, and reject absentee ballots. These measures have all disproportionately impacted African-American, Latino, and Asian American voters, making it difficult for them to exercise their right to vote.

For a PDF copy of the letter, click here.