Brian Kemp is Suppressing the Vote in Georgia and He Must Be Stopped

For Immediate Release
October 11, 2018

Brian Kemp is Suppressing the Vote in Georgia and He Must Be Stopped

WASHINGTON, D.C. — Yesterday, the Associated Press reported that Brian Kemp, Georgia Republican gubernatorial candidate, is taking advantage of his role as current secretary of state in order to put a hold on more than 53,000 voter registration applications, a move widely seen as an attempt to improperly silence Georgia voters. EMILYs List Senior Director of Campaign Communications Julie McClain Downey released the following statement:

“This is a blatant abuse of power and a suppression of the democratic rights of Georgians. It's clear why Brian Kemp has refused the calls for him to step down as secretary of state while he runs for governor: he is using his position to rob communities of color of their voices in this election. This is the most recent example in Kemp's long history of cancelling registrations and undermining voting access for the state's minority populations. No matter one's political party, we must all come together to call on Brian Kemp to do the right thing and stop holding up voter registrations for his own political gain. In the long-term, the only way to end this type of assault on civil rights is to defeat Brian Kemp on November 6th.”  
 Voters who have questions or are concerned about the status of their registrations can contact the Democratic Party of Georgia’s Voter Protection Hotline at 1-888-730-5816.

EMILYs List, the nation’s largest resource for women in politics, has raised over $500 million to support pro-choice Democratic women candidates – making them one of the most successful political organizations ever. Our grassroots community of over five million members helps Democratic women wage competitive campaigns – and win. We recruit and train candidates, support strong campaigns, research the issues that impact women and families, and turn out women voters. Since our founding in 1985, we have helped elect 116 women to the House, 23 to the Senate, 12 governors, and over 800 to state and local office. Forty percent of the candidates EMILYs List has helped elect to Congress have been women of color. Since the 2016 election, thousands of women and counting have reached out to us about running for office. To harness this energy, EMILYs List has launched Run to Win, an unprecedented effort to get more women to run at the local, state, and national levels.