Georgia Civil Rights Groups Stand Against DOJ Information Request

Several civil rights groups, including the NAACP, ACLU and the New Georgia Project, a voter activism organization, say giving that information to the Trump administration could lead to voter intimidation and suppression. 

So, they’re asking Kemp to share copies of any information it gives to the commission if he decides to comply with the commission’s request. 

“We’re demanding to inspect copies of any information to verify that no confidential information is being disclosed,” Sean J. Young, legal director for Georgia’s NAACP chapter, said. “Better yet, he can refuse to cooperate with this commission entirely.” 

But Candice Broce of the Secretary of State’s office said as long as the commission pays the required $250 fee, it has to share the information under Georgia’s Open Records Act. 

“It is ridiculous that these groups are asking us not to comply with Georgia’s Open Records Act, when they have been the beneficiaries of this very law,” Broce said. 

Broce said the information her office would share with the commission is the same information it sent to the Georgia NAACP back in March, along with other organizations in the past year. 

“The 600-plus entities that have gotten a copy of the public voter file in the past 18 months, that’s the same file that we’re providing to the commission,” she said. 

The Secretary of States office said the information included in the public voter file are a person’s name, address, designated polling information (the district your residence is located in), and where residents go to vote. It could also include limited voter history, such as whether you participated in an election in the past and whether you voted on a Democratic or Republican ballot in a primary election. 

Broce said the public voter file doesn’t include information like a person’s social security number, drivers license number, or where someone registers to vote. 

The groups are also asking for copies of any communication between the Secretary of State’s office and the Trump administration. 

“We are asking for all communications relating to voting and this sham of a commission, to ensure that Georgia is not wasting precious taxpayer dollars cooperating with this obvious voter suppression effort,” Young said. 

Broce said, unless the information is legally protected, her office will share that too if it gets an open records request.