Raffensperger Praises Eleventh Circuit for Securing Polling Precincts from Outside Influence

Republican Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger today applauded the United States Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit for vacating a lower-court ruling and restoring proper legal standards in the ongoing litigation over Georgia’s Election Integrity Act, also known as SB 202.

The Court held that the lower court used the wrong legal standard when it enjoined part of Georgia’s gift-ban rule – an election-day safeguard that prevents influence and interference near polling locations. The Eleventh Circuit directed the lower court to apply the Supreme Court’s required framework before taking any further action.

“The Eleventh Circuit’s ruling reinforces a simple truth: Georgia has the right and the responsibility to shield voters from influence and interference at the polls,” Raffensperger said. “Despite what Stacey Abrams and her cronies say, our laws safeguard every Georgian’s right to free, fair, and fast elections.”

SB 202 prohibits individuals and organizations from giving money, gifts, food, or drink to voters within restricted distances around polling places and voting lines. Georgia enacted these provisions to prevent attempts to direct or influence voters during the voting process.

Georgia is recognized as a national leader in elections. It was the first state in the country to implement the trifecta of automatic voter registration, at least 17 days of early voting (which has been called the “gold standard”), and no-excuse absentee voting. Georgia continues to set records for voter turnout and election participation, seeing the largest increase in average turnout of any other state in the 2018 midterm election and record turnout in 2020, and 2022. 2022 achieved the largest single day of in-person early voting turnout in Georgia midterm history utilizing Georgia’s secure, paper ballot voting system. Most recently, Georgia received top rankings for Election Integrity by the Heritage Foundation, a top ranking for Voter Accessibility by the Center for Election Innovation & Research and tied for number one in Election Administration by the Bipartisan Policy Center.