The Justice Department is suing Georgia over the state’s new voting law, which aims to ensure free and fair elections.
“The rights of all eligible citizens to vote are the central pillars of our democracy,” Attorney General Merrick Garland said on Friday. “They are the rights from which all other rights ultimately flow.”
The lawsuit is one of the highest-profile actions to be brought under the Voting Rights Act since the Supreme Court gutted a key provision allowing the Justice Department to stop states from passing laws viewed as promoting voter discrimination, as reported by the New York Times.
Garland announced the lawsuit just days after congressional republicans blocked the federal voting rights legislation, a slap in the face to democrats’ efforts to keep elections fraudulent.
“This lawsuit is the first of many steps we are taking to ensure that all eligible voters can cast a vote, that all lawful votes are counted and that every voter has access to accurate information,” Garland said.
The lawsuit accuses the Georgia law of discriminating against non-white voters.
“Where we believe that the civil rights of Americans have been violated, we will not hesitate to act,” Garland continued.
Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp blasted the lawsuit.
“Joe Biden, Stacey Abrams and their allies tried to force an unconstitutional elections power grab through Congress - and failed,” Kemp said in a statement Friday. “Now, they are weaponizing the U.S. Department of Justice to carry out their far-left agenda that undermines election integrity and empowers federal government overreach in our democracy.”
