Sen. Raphael Warnock (D-Ga.) said Sunday on CBS' “Face the Nation” that Georgia's high turnout in early voting does not disprove charges of voter suppression. .
A partial transcription follows:
MARGARET BRENNAN: Senator, we've had incredible turnout so far in Georgia. But on Friday, Vice President Harris spoke out about attacks on voting freedoms, specifically mentioning Georgia. As you know, the Department of Justice and the state have been fighting, dating back to 2021, over some state laws that the Justice Department said denied or abridged voting rights for Black Georgians based on their race or color. . The Department of Justice did not prevail in that case. Do you think the Vice President's continued statements could backfire in terms of discouraging people from going to the polls?
Warnock: No, I think the purpose of voter suppression is to discourage people from voting. Look, we've seen what the Georgia Board of Elections shenanigans are all about. The courts rightly pushed back against this effort to literally change the rules while people were voting. Remember, during my last runoff, I had to sue state officials in Georgia to allow people to vote the first weekend of the runoff. Thankfully, the court ruled my election correct, and by the way, the margin of my victory was close to the number of people who voted the first weekend they were told they “couldn't vote.” In my case, the court made the correct decision. They did it right this week, but I think the most important thing is that people participate. The way to deal with this is to never let anyone silence your voice. We are thrilled to have this incredible participation from across the state. I think this speaks to the vigilance of the people of Georgia. And we hope to keep doing that all the way through the end of early voting, ending on November 1st, and then getting everyone else together on November 5th.
BRENNAN: But your state's governor, Brian Kemp, criticized the vice president and Democratic Party officials, saying the truth is that it's easy to vote in Georgia but difficult to cheat, and they're trying to raise campaign funds. He said he had lied about Georgia's election laws to instill fear. people. Wouldn't this high turnout dampen so-called voter suppression attempts?
Warnock: Listen, I've been through some elections in Georgia, and what I saw there was lines wrapped around buildings. We witnessed state officials' efforts to prevent people from voting during the first weekend of runoff elections, and Georgians stood up. Listen, the fact that voters voted does not mean that voter suppression does not exist. It means people don't want their voices to be silenced or muted. And the good news is they're showing up. We will continue to do this from now until November 1st, and then appear on Election Day, November 5th.
BRENNAN: So you support the belief that there is an attempt to suppress voting in Georgia?
Warnock: Listen, we saw what the State Board of Elections did last week. Literally, they're trying to change the rules in the middle of an election…
Warnock: – and the court had to reverse what they were going to do. And what I would say to the people of Georgia is, the way to deal with this is to keep showing up.
