States have adopted 50 new election laws since the beginning of May. Nearly half of these bills come from Georgia, where Gov. Brian Kemp (R) has signed 24 election-related bills, including several that have garnered national attention for how they change the state’s voting laws.
One of these bills was SB 189, an omnibus election bill that changed several areas of election law. The legislation passed the Georgia House of Representatives 101-73 on March 26, with two Democrats joining Republicans to approve it. It then passed the Georgia Senate along party lines on March 29, and Gov. Kemp signed the bill into law on May 6.
Changes made by the bill include removing the secretary of state from the state election board, allowing election officials to remove a voter from registration rolls up to 45 days before an election, requiring all absentee ballots to be counted by one hour after the close of polls on election day, and a new definition of probable cause for a voter registration challenge. For a complete summary of the bill, click here.
The bill’s supporters say it will result in more accurate and transparent elections. One of the bill’s sponsors, Rep. John LaHood (R), said, “I see this as being pro-America, pro-accuracy, pro-transparency and pro-election integrity.” The bill’s critics say it will disenfranchise eligible voters and that portions of the bill directly conflict with the National Voter Registration Act, which prohibits the removal of voters from registration rolls within 90 days of an election. ACLU of Georgia Executive Director Andrea Young said, “Access to the ballot is at the heart of our democracy. This election ‘Frankenbill’ violates the National Voter Registration Act. We are committed to protecting Georgia voters. If the governor signs this bill, we will see him in court.”
SB 189 also included a provision allowing a political party that has obtained presidential elector ballot access in at least 20 states or territories to qualify for the general election ballot in Georgia.
Other notable legislation Gov. Kemp signed on May 6 includes HB 1207 and HB 974. HB 1207 requires all election officials and poll workers to be U.S. citizens, grants poll watchers access to polling places, advance voting locations, tabulation centers, and absentee ballot processing locations, and stipulates that they are entitled to observe any activity conducted at these locations. The bill passed the Senate along party lines on March 26 and then passed the lower chamber on March 28, with one Democrat joining House Republicans to send the bill to the governor for signature.
HB 974 requires watermarks on absentee ballots, establishes a pilot program to scan and publicly post images of all voted ballots on the secretary of state’s website, and expands post-election risk-limiting audit requirements. According to the bill text, these risk-limiting audits will use “statistical methods and [are] designed to limit to acceptable levels the risk of certifying a preliminary election outcome that constitutes an incorrect outcome.” HB 974 received more bipartisan support than the other two bills. On March 26, 14 Democrats joined Republicans in the Senate to pass the bill 47-6. On March 28, it passed the lower chamber 136-29, with 42 Democrats joining Republicans to advance the bill.
Gov. Kemp also signed more than 10 other election bills in May that changed election procedures in specific municipalities or jurisdictions in the state. For a complete list of election-related bills adopted in Georgia this year, click here.
Thirty-five states have passed 233 election administration bills in 2024. The states that have passed the most are Georgia (33) and Tennessee (29), both of which have Republican trifectas, followed by Virginia (25), which has a divided government. The states with Democratic trifectas that have passed the most bills are Maryland (10) and Massachusetts (8), followed by New Jersey (4) and Washington (4).