Latino Voter Registration Surges in Georgia. Here Are Election Dates You Should Know About.

latino-georgia-elections

AP Photo/Jeff Amy

By Araceli Cruz

June 28, 2021

Newly registered voters may think there’s nothing left to do until the next big election, but that’s far from true. 

More and more Latinos in Georgia are voting; there’s no question about that. In the 2020 presidential election, Latino voters showed up to the polls more than ever before—140,995 new voters since 2016. And Latinos also showed up for the Senate runoff races in January 2021. However, newly registered voters may think there’s nothing left to do until the next big election, but that’s far from true. 

RELATED: After Georgia: Show Up For Latinos Year-Round, Not Only When It’s Convenient

With an increase in civic involvement by the Latino community, Carlos Alberto Garcia, a youth project coordinator for Unidos Latino Association, a grassroots organization in Georgia, told The Americano that there’s much work to be done. 

“I know how exciting major elections like presidential and governor elections can be, but we must have our voices heard when it comes to municipal elections when we vote for our mayor, city council, commissioner, judges, etc. They are leaders who impact our day-to-day life in places we reside,” Garcia said. 

So what’s on the line for Latino voters in Georgia? A lot. On March 26, Gov. Brian Kemp signed into law a bill that adds many obstacles to voting. Some of those problematic issues include decreasing the number of ballot boxes, reducing the window for early voting, adding additional photo ID requirements, and allowing state officials to avoid the work of county election officials if they don’t like the outcomes they are seeing. The Georgia bill also makes it illegal for outside groups to give water or food to voters stuck in long lines.

And just this week, Georgia’s secretary of state, Republican Brad Raffensperger said they removed more than 100,000 names from the state’s voter registration rolls. All of this is to say if you registered to vote in the state of Georgia, don’t assume you will remain on the state’s voter registration rolls. Instead, always keep track of your voter registration and make sure it’s up to date. 

You can check your voter registration HERE.

RELATED: How Latinos Helped Ossoff and Warnock Win Georgia—and Change the Future of America

“The most critical issue Latino voters should know right now going on in Georgia is the new SB202 ,which goes into effect for these upcoming municipal elections,” Garcia said. “The second critical issue is how our legislators will be drawing our district maps. This is the process of legislators drawing district boundaries of where elections take place. This process is done every ten years after a census, and I want to draw attention to this so we can have input on the drawing of the maps so our community doesn’t get split and we have a stronger voice in who gets elected.”

Important Upcoming Election Dates: 

What: Special Election 

When: Sept. 21, 2021

Voter registration deadline: Aug. 23, 2021 

What: Special Election Runoff 

When: Oct. 19, 2021 

Voter registration deadline: Aug. 23, 2021 

What: General Election/Special Election 

When: Nov. 2, 2021 

Voter registration deadline: Oct. 4, 2021 

Why: Vote for Atlanta mayor, city council, and nine seats on the Atlanta Public Schools board. 

In 2022: 

Democratic Sen. Raphael Warnock will seek full-term re-election on Nov. 8, 2022. 

The Georgia House of Representatives is one of 88 state legislative chambers holding elections in 2022

For more information about elections in Georgia, visit:

2021 election calendar

2022 election calendar

https://theamericanonews.com/newsletter/

Author

CATEGORIES: Elections | Georgia

Politics

Local News

Related Stories