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Georgia Republicans Continue “Hostile Takeover”of Local Redistricting
February 17, 2022
| GOP’s local “power grab” is yet “another example of Republicans trying to maintain control” |
| Over the past several days, Georgia Republicans in the state legislature shamelessly continued their local “power grab” across the state by pushing new county district maps in Gwinnett, Cobb, Augusta-Richmond, and Athens-Clarke despite opposition from local leaders in a move that nonpartisan experts are calling “redistricting at its very worst.” In Gwinnett, Cobb, and Augusta-Richmond, Republicans have even ignored their own rules that require support from the majority of state legislators representing a county to pass a new local map – a desperate GOP ploy “to retain some political power in…increasingly Democratic area[s].” Republicans’ stunning move to “[bypass] the normal rules in order to draw maps that are more favorable to conservative candidates” specifically targets increasingly Democratic counties with significant communities of color. This local gerrymandering is part of the Georgia GOP’s disturbing trend of rigging the system after Democrats’ historic wins in the 2020 elections, including by making it harder to vote, redrawing Georgia’s congressional map in the GOP’s favor, limiting opponents’ fundraising capabilities, and interfering with local governance. Georgia House Minority Leader James Beverly condemned the Georgia GOP for defying long-standing rules, subverting local control, and suppressing the voices of voters in a speech today, saying, “The process by which local redistricting has been handled under this Gold Dome is wrong. It has been no less than what we can easily be termed as a hostile takeover by the majority party.” “Republicans’ egregious local redistricting scheme proves what we all know: the GOP is terrified of Georgia voters,” said Rebecca Galanti, spokesperson for the Democratic Party of Georgia. “The Georgia GOP knows they can’t win on ideas, so they’re resorting to shameless power grabs to cement their own power at the expense of voters – especially voters of color. While Republicans attempt to continue their racial gerrymandering project across the state, Democrats will never stop fighting for maps that reflect the will of the people.” |
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