ATLANTA — Few people mention Donald Trump in hearings on Georgia’s latest elections bill, but complaints about his loss in the 2020 election are motivating Republican efforts to again rewrite the rules.
Trump’s supporters repeat his allegations of “fraud,” a need for a “forensic audit” and criticism of “Zuckerbucks” donations from Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg to county election offices during the coronavirus pandemic.
Georgia’s elections bill aims to appease them by expanding police investigations, allowing public inspections of paper ballots and restricting nonprofit contributions.
The proposals focus on perceived flaws in the presidential election, long after recounts and investigations countered politically driven beliefs that Democrat Joe Biden’s victory was illegitimate. Bipartisan election officials have repeatedly upheld the results.
“The Republican Party has lost, and now they’re changing the rules,” said the Rev. Paul Little II, pastor at Bibb Mount Zion Baptist Church in Macon during a press conference by Black clergy. “It’s absolutely despicable, but it’s not final. It’s not fatal. We will not drop out of the game just because the rules have changed.”