ATLANTA — A new lawsuit is looking to overturn two provisions of a Georgia election law related to voter challenges.
The Georgia State Conference of the NAACP and the Georgia Coalition for the People’s Agenda filed the suit on Tuesday in federal court in Atlanta.
They argue that the law, passed earlier this year, unfairly discriminates against homeless people and those registered at nonresidential addresses.
State Senate Ethics Committee Max Burns, a Republican from Sylvania, expressed confidence that Senate Bill 189, which partly took effect in July, will hold up in court.
“The legal challenges to SB 189 were anticipated. It was crafted with the intent to withstand any such challenges, and we are confident that the state’s position will prevail, ensuring SB 189 remains the law of the land,” Burns said in a statement Tuesday.
One part of the law allows individuals to file legal challenges against the eligibility of voters registered at nonresidential addresses.
County election boards then decide whether to reject or uphold the challenge.
Supporters argue that many people are incorrectly registered at business addresses or even empty lots, potentially leading them to vote in the wrong precincts and local elections.
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Some voter challengers argue that college students should not be able to register to vote at their dormitories because they do not intend to live there indefinitely. However, voting officials disagree, stating that allowing students to register at college dorms has long been the practice.
Opponents of the law argue that college dormitories, senior and nursing facilities, and homeless shelters may be zoned as nonresidential. They say there’s no basis in state or federal law for challenging a voter solely based on providing a nonresidential address.
“Residing at a premises deemed to ‘residential’ in character is not required by the Georgia Constitution or any other Georgia law respecting voter eligibility in the state of Georgia,” the lawsuit states.
The plaintiffs also seek to overturn a separate section of the law, effective Jan. 1, which governs where homeless people register.
This section mandates that homeless people use their county’s election office to receive election-related mail.
This could result in lengthy journeys for individuals to retrieve important mail, such as absentee ballots and eligibility challenges.
The lawsuit argues the law is unfair because other Georgia voters can receive mail at their address of choice, even if it’s not where they reside.
The suit warns that it is unclear whether counties will hold mail for homeless people, noting there is no special homeless category on voter registration forms.
It raises concerns that counties may unilaterally change mailing addresses for existing voters or reject new applications from homeless people who don’t list the county office.
“Eligible voters who are unhoused, housing-insecure or otherwise living at a location with a nonstandard address — or no address at all — retain their right to vote regardless of the nature or status of their residence,” the suit states.
Republican activists are challenging tens of thousands of Georgia voters in a national effort coordinated by Donald Trump’s allies to remove names from voting rolls.
They argue that allowing individuals who have moved away to remain on the rolls invites fraud.
However, Democrats and liberal voting rights activists argue that Republicans are challenging voters to either remove Democrats or to sow doubt about the accuracy of elections as the 2024 presidential vote approaches.
The Associated Press contributed to this story.
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