Former President Donald Trump released a statement by email through the Save America PAC Friday, congratulating Georgia officials for passing new voter regulations.
“Congratulations to Georgia and the Georgia State Legislature on changing their voter Rules and Regulations,” Trump said in his statement. “They learned from the travesty of the 2020 Presidential Election, which can never be allowed to happen again. Too bad these changes could not have been done sooner!”
I was proud to sign S.B. 202 to ensure elections in Georgia are secure, fair, and accessible. I appreciate the hard work of members of the General Assembly to make it easy to vote and hard to cheat. pic.twitter.com/1ztPnfD6rd
— Governor Brian P. Kemp (@GovKemp) March 25, 2021
The new laws will include widespread election changes that will be implemented ahead of the 2022 midterms, according to U.S. News & World Report.
These changes include new limits on the distribution of mailing out absentee-ballots and establishes a firm total on the amount of ballot drop boxes there can be, according to the Wall Street Journal.
It also requires voters to provide one of several forms of identification including a driver’s license number, last four digits of one’s Social Security number, and other options, the Wall Street Journal reported. This information will also be necessary when voters are mailing out their ballots. Former protocol required voters to simply sign an absentee-ballot application and write their signature when they mail it in. (RELATED: Trump’s Pollster Examines The Five ‘Political Tribes’ Within The GOP)
Additionally, the new voting laws will increase the speed of certification of elections, limit early voting on any runoff elections, and prohibit “line warming” during elections – volunteers handing out refreshments to voters while waiting in line to vote, according to U.S. News & World Report.
Georgia Governor Brian Kemp signed the law on Thursday after it was passed in the state legislature along party lines — supported by Republicans and opposed by Democrats, according to U.S. News and World Report.