Out of the issues you discuss, only the timeframe for requesting, receiving and returning an absentee ballot is a clear net negative for Georgia voters, having been clearly shortened. Limiting clerks from sending ballots no more than 4 weeks before the election, is especially weird given that ballots sent overseas will continue to be sent 7-weeks ahead of the election.
That said, for the remainder of your objections:
1) The Voter ID requirements can be met by printing last 4 digits of the voter’s SSN and providing a copy of any of the following documents: copy of a current utility bill, bank statement, government check, paycheck, or other government document that shows the name and address of the voter. Even for those who don’t have a driver’s license or can’t get a voter ID it really should be a non-issue.
2) The application process for receiving an absentee ballot was designed to avoid all the issues, confusion and voter frustration raised in this ProPublica story: https://bit.ly/3uog3ua
It has nothing to do with limiting access to requesting an absentee ballot, so much as preventing your dead relative’s mailbox being spammed with misleading junk mail from a dodgy outfit that purchased an outdated voter mailing list.
3) Lastly absentee ballot drop boxes. Prior to 2020 these didn’t exist, so there’s nothing being taken away from voters - in fact drop boxes are an additional voting option being enabled by the law for the first time. Let’s not forget, absentee ballots were always meant to be mailed - so every Post Office box is a “drop box”. The tighter windows for receiving an absentee ballot also provide a benefit here - (since they’re mailed no later than 11 days before an election) it provides plenty of time for voters to fill out their ballot and drop it in the mail with plenty of time to spare.
As a non-GA citizen this clears up a lot.
In the 7th paragraph, I think this out to be returning instead of requesting
"the deadline for requesting an absentee ballot has been moved to two Fridays before an election instead of the Friday before an election,"
Out of the issues you discuss, only the timeframe for requesting, receiving and returning an absentee ballot is a clear net negative for Georgia voters, having been clearly shortened. Limiting clerks from sending ballots no more than 4 weeks before the election, is especially weird given that ballots sent overseas will continue to be sent 7-weeks ahead of the election.
That said, for the remainder of your objections:
1) The Voter ID requirements can be met by printing last 4 digits of the voter’s SSN and providing a copy of any of the following documents: copy of a current utility bill, bank statement, government check, paycheck, or other government document that shows the name and address of the voter. Even for those who don’t have a driver’s license or can’t get a voter ID it really should be a non-issue.
2) The application process for receiving an absentee ballot was designed to avoid all the issues, confusion and voter frustration raised in this ProPublica story: https://bit.ly/3uog3ua
It has nothing to do with limiting access to requesting an absentee ballot, so much as preventing your dead relative’s mailbox being spammed with misleading junk mail from a dodgy outfit that purchased an outdated voter mailing list.
3) Lastly absentee ballot drop boxes. Prior to 2020 these didn’t exist, so there’s nothing being taken away from voters - in fact drop boxes are an additional voting option being enabled by the law for the first time. Let’s not forget, absentee ballots were always meant to be mailed - so every Post Office box is a “drop box”. The tighter windows for receiving an absentee ballot also provide a benefit here - (since they’re mailed no later than 11 days before an election) it provides plenty of time for voters to fill out their ballot and drop it in the mail with plenty of time to spare.