Federal Judge Won’t Reopen Georgia Voter Registration Despite Hurricane Helene Disruptions

A federal judge ruled Thursday that Georgia’s voter registration will not be reopened for November’s elections, despite disruptions caused by Hurricane Helene. U.S. District Judge Eleanor Ross rejected the request from three advocacy groups to extend the deadline, stating that the plaintiffs didn’t sufficiently prove that individuals were harmed by the missed deadline.

At least 40 advocacy groups had asked Republican Gov. Brian Kemp and Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger to extend the registration deadline in affected counties before the Georgia lawsuit was filed.\

The plaintiffs, including the Georgia NAACP and the Georgia Coalition for the People’s Agenda, argued that the hurricane hindered people’s ability to register, particularly due to widespread power outages and closures of county election offices. However, Judge Ross sided with the state, citing concerns that reopening registration could disrupt election processes, as absentee ballots had already been mailed and early voting was set to begin soon.

Despite testimonies about individuals affected by the hurricane, the judge concluded there was no clear evidence linking their inability to register directly to the storm’s aftermath. She added that Georgia law doesn’t provide Gov. Kemp or Secretary of SOS Raffensperger the authority to extend the registration deadline.

In their suit, the Plaintiffs noted that a court in South Carolina extended that state’s registration deadline after Helene and that courts in Georgia and Florida extended registration deadlines after 2016’s Hurricane Matthew. 

While the plaintiffs expressed disappointment with the ruling, they have not indicated whether they will appeal.