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Page 73: No person shall solicit votes in any manner or by any means or method, nor shall any person distribute or display any campaign material, nor shall any person give, offer to give, or participate in the giving of any money or gifts, including, but not limited to, food and drink, to an elector, nor shall any person solicit signatures for any petition, nor shall any person, other than election officials discharging their duties, establish or set up any tables or booths on any day in which ballots are being cast: (1) Within 150 feet of the outer edge of any building within which a polling place is established; (2) Within any polling place; or (3) Within 25 feet of any voter standing in line to vote at any polling place.
2010 Georgia Code
TITLE 21 - ELECTIONS
CHAPTER 2 - ELECTIONS AND PRIMARIES GENERALLY
ARTICLE 15 - MISCELLANEOUS OFFENSES
§ 21-2-570 - Giving or receiving, offering to give or receive, or participating in the giving or receiving of money or gifts for registering as a voter, voting, or voting for a particular candidate
O.C.G.A. 21-2-570 (2010)
21-2-570. Giving or receiving, offering to give or receive, or participating in the giving or receiving of money or gifts for registering as a voter, voting, or voting for a particular candidate
Any person who gives or receives, offers to give or receive, or participates in the giving or receiving of money or gifts for the purpose of registering as a voter, voting, or voting for a particular candidate in any primary or election shall be guilty of a felony.
Where is the mention of food and water ? It is completely absent. And that is important because most people would not believe that food and water while standing in a long line is a reward for voting. Why did groups provide food and water previously ? Because voters were in very long lines (usually in diverse communities) and could become dehydrated or could see other adverse health consequences. We are not talking about caviar or some fancy meal here or an expensive glass of wine. Food and drink only would last until they vote most likely: it has a very limited pecuniary value for a limited time. Virtually nobody is going to get in a long line so that they can get a bottle of water; they very likely could get that elsewhere much quicker. Who in theory would be induced to get into a long line to vote in order to get a bottle of water when they otherwise would not do so ? Only the poorest of the poor, perhaps hurt by the pandemic. So, they would be penalizing the poorest of the poor. This law unlike past law, then, makes it clear that providing food and drink including water would be interpreted as providing a reward for voters for voting (although not for a specific political party or candidate).
I know that we want to find some republican elected official or election official to be a decent human being since there is such a dearth of ethical, empathetic and compassionate humans among them. However, we sometimes are too quick to do so. Gabriel Sterling is a liar. Some lies were too much for him because they could incite harm to him or his family or friends … And I don’t wish that upon him or his family or any others. However, his motives for speaking up against some lies may very well be (consciously or unconsciously) that they could harm him. Those lies impugned his office. Republicans sometimes suddenly become empathetic when bigotry from the republican party suddenly affects them. The lions are going to eat my face ? Well, that’s wrong.
Gabriel Sterling in the quote I provided clearly engaged in bothsiderism and either suggested that President Biden’s true statement was equal in the danger it posed to people’s lives as the language used by the former guy, Donald Trump, or equated the true statement made by President Biden with the language used by the guy who incited the insurrection. Really ? You’re actually equating the two. Nobody is that dense. It’s an act, right, Gabriel ? Tell me that you are not really that fucking stupid. And I can’t believe that which leads me to the only other conclusion: he’s lying. It is impossible to believe that Gabriel Sterling as the chief elections official did not know that the previous laws did not mention food and water (he linked to the law which presumably he read before he had his writing published in the Washington Post for the world to see ) or how ridiculous and inhumane it would be to consider providing food and water to those in long lines to be a reward when they are not connected to a political party. As an aside, one wonders what happens if a non partisan group offers water to people prior to getting in line ? What if the person giving a bottle of water knows the person who will end up voting ? What happens then ? What if they give it a day before the election ? Now what ?
Gabriel Sterling’s claims about making it easier to vote are bogus as well. It is true in certain counties, but which counties is it more likely to be true in ?
Early voting is expanded in a lot of small counties, but probably not in more populous ones
These new strict rules on early voting hours are likely to curtail voting access for Georgians who work daytime hours or have less flexible schedules and who may be unable to return an absentee ballot.
The provision requires counties to hold early voting during weekday working hours — 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. — and says it may be held for longer but may not take place before 7 a.m. or after 7 p.m. on those days.
The provision also adds a second required Saturday of early voting (the previous law required only one), which will increase access to early voting in most of the state’s rural counties, where election administrators have often been short-staffed and have offered fewer hours of early voting. Most larger counties in the state already offered multiple weekend days of early voting.
The law doesn’t require the availability of early voting on Sundays, which means that counties can choose whether to open for early voting on up to two Sundays before an election.
Counties that choose not to open on Sundays would be limiting ballot access for parishioners at Black churches that have often organized parishioners to vote after Sunday services.
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Gabriel Sterling like Boehner who despite everything else he said still voted for Donald Trump is no hero. He simply defended his office. Honest conservative voters left their party already.
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