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GREATER GEORGIA SURPASSES OBJECTIVES IN YEAR ONE, SETS KEY PRIORITIES FOR 2022
Dec 21, 2021
Since launching in February 2021, Greater Georgia Action (Greater Georgia) has built critical infrastructure to establish a robust field organization, empower voters and protect election integrity. This effort has resulted in a statewide ground game that is registering voters, engaging diverse and underrepresented communities, and bringing back disengaged and disenfranchised voters. Together with hundreds of grassroots volunteers, Greater Georgia has built an active network – including knocking thousands of doors, sending digital communications, registering thousands of voters – generating over 1.5 million voter contacts.
"In building Greater Georgia, we are growing the tent by keeping it up outside of election years," said Kelly Loeffler, Chairwoman of Greater Georgia. "Our objective was to set the foundation of a field-based organization and build the election operations that our state needs for local and statewide elections – and especially for our voters. The voices of Georgians must be heard through fair, trusted elections, which is why we are focused on restoring faith, participation and engagement in the voting process. I want to recognize the tireless efforts of the grassroots across our state for working to protect the American values that underpin this exceptional country."
See below for highlights and our progress after just one year:
Field Metrics:
- 1.6 MILLION contacts with unregistered, disengaged, and disenfranchised Georgians, and thousands more with registered grassroots volunteers and active voters
- Over 100,000 engagements with unregistered and disengaged Georgians
- Doors program reached over 20,000 households on their doorstep
Highlights:
- Conducted dozens of field trainings, volunteer recruitments, and voter registration efforts across Georgia, building out staffing and mobilization strategy; established 21-region advisory board to support the focus on organizing locally
- Successfully executed a six-figure voter registration, mobilization, and election integrity campaign in the special election for State House District 34 – driving 23 percent of the vote and increasing the conservative margin of victory over 2020 by seven percentage points
- Launched the Red Belt Blitz campaign to register and engage voters in five suburban Atlanta counties, including rapidly growing areas for voter registration
- Hosted a dozen roundtables with diverse and underrepresented communities and participated in dozens of outreach events across the state
- Conducted an ad campaign recognizing Georgia legislators for passing the Election Integrity Act (S.B. 202) and conducted educational efforts around the law
- Launched an ad campaign and organized demonstrations to expose the misinformation campaign that resulted in the MLB's relocating the All-Star game, which cost Georgia $100 million in lost revenues
- Called for an investigation into Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger's handling of the 2020 elections; filed open records requests into how Big Tech money was spent at the county elections level and in the Secretary of State's office, and continuing to seek transparency into the influence of outside groups on Georgia's elections
Priorities for 2022:
- Building on our statewide infrastructure to deliver the ground game and voter mobilization required
- Registering thousands more voters to narrow the partisan registration gap
- Protecting the integrity of our elections to restore confidence following unprecedented changes to voting processes in 2020
See below for some photo highlights from 2021:
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Media Contact: press@greatergeorgia.com
(ATLANTA) – Today, Greater Georgia Chairwoman and former U.S. Senator Kelly Loeffler applauded Governor Kemp as he signed a package of new election integrity bills into law. The package features several key pieces of legislation, including Senate Bill 189 - which codifies some of the most significant election reforms of 2024. “Greater Georgia is grateful to Governor Kemp for signing today’s package of election reforms - and to our conservative leaders, including Lt. Governor Jones and Speaker Burns, who have made continuous investments in election integrity, year after year,” said Greater Georgia Chairwoman Kelly Loeffler. “Although there is always more work to be done, our new laws will ensure even more accuracy, safety, and transparency. On the eve of a presidential election, Georgians deserve to have confidence that - despite the best efforts of liberal activists in our courts, our media, and our federal government - their votes will count. That's why Greater Georgia will continue to be a watchdog for election integrity.” Senate Bill 189 expands on the previous reforms of SB 202, Georgia’s Election Integrity Act, which was passed in 2021. Among other provisions, the new law: Removes the Secretary of State from the State Election Board to promote impartiality in Board deliberations. Expands the conditions for challenging and removing ineligible voters from the voter rolls to ensure only legal, eligible citizens can vote. Sets clear deadlines for submitting absentee ballots. Allows a political party’s presidential candidate to qualify for Georgia’s ballot if they have obtained ballot access in 20 other states. Bans Secretary of State employees from obtaining state contracts related to voting equipment, preventing conflicts of interest. Creates additional ballot chain of custody rules starting in 2025 to prevent tampering or misplacement of absentee ballots. Eliminates QR codes from ballots starting in 2026 so that only human-readable inputs are counted when tabulating vote totals. Senate Bill 189 was sponsored by State Senator Max Burns (R-Sylvania) and carried in the State House by Representative John LaHood (R-Valdosta). Greater Georgia, launched by former U.S. Senator Kelly Loeffler in 2021, is a 501(c4) nonpartisan nonprofit dedicated to growing participation in the democratic process by mobilizing and empowering voters. The group works year-round to educate and register voters, engage with diverse and underrepresented communities, and protect election integrity. ### Media Contact: press@greatergeorgia.com
(ATLANTA) – This week, Greater Georgia hosted the second annual Greater Georgia Legislative Awards Ceremony. Held in Atlanta, the event drew over 300 guests to honor state lawmakers and leaders for their accomplishments during the 2024 legislative session. Honored guest speakers included Governor Brian P. Kemp, First Lady Marty Kemp, and Speaker of the House Jon Burns. Award recipients from the Georgia General Assembly included: State Senate Majority Leader Steve Gooch Majority Whip Randy Robertson Majority Caucus Secretary Larry Walker Senator Greg Dolezal Senator Russ Goodman State House Representative Lauren Daniel Representative Matthew Gambill Representative John LaHood Representative Mesha Mainor Representative Steven Sainz View photos from the event below.
ATLANTA – Today, Greater Georgia released key findings from an analysis of voter data from the state’s Presidential Preference Primary, held March 12, 2024. The data revealed signs of promise for the conservative movement, which is backed by voter enthusiasm, growing support from diverse communities, and an influx of new voters - including 7,000 first-time voters and 30,000 crossover voters. “The Greater Georgia analysis shows both progress and room for growth,” said Greater Georgia Chairwoman Kelly Loeffler. “It is no surprise that conservatives have the enthusiasm advantage going into November, given the failed Biden agenda that has depressed turnout in Democratic primaries across the country. And although we also see signs of new support from minority, first-time, and crossover voters on the Republican side, 2024 will ultimately be about turnout. That’s why we will continue to mobilize voters in support of conservatives up and down the ballot, to promote opportunity, security, and freedom.” More than 588,000 voters participated in Georgia’s Republican presidential primary compared to the 290,000 who participated in the Democratic presidential primary. In the Republican primary, women made up 52% of the electorate. While white voters made up the majority of the electorate at 95%, more Asian and Hispanic voters pulled a Republican ballot than a Democratic ballot. In fact, Hispanic voters represented a larger share of the Republican primary electorate in 2024 than in 2020, indicating growing support within the Latino and Hispanic communities. Most of the Republican electorate comprised those who had pulled a GOP ballot in all or most primary elections. But 30,000 Republican voters, or 5% of the Republican electorate, were either split-primary voters, majority Democratic primary voters, or exclusively Democratic primary voters. These 30,000 voters were more likely to be rural, nonwhite, and lower-income citizens. Notably, nearly 7,000 first-time voters participated in the Republican primary - compared to just 3,000 first-time voters in the Democratic primary. Democrats, meanwhile, saw a dramatic decrease in turnout for the presidential primary compared to 2020, when about 800,000 more Democrats voted. This year’s Democratic electorate was 64% women, 65% black, and 52% over the age of 65. Fewer Hispanic, Asian, and first-time voters participated in the Democratic primary compared to the Republican primary. 6,000 voters left their ballots blank. The lack of enthusiasm reflected in the Democratic primary is consistent with the poll conducted by Greater Georgia earlier this year, which found that 57% of likely Georgia voters had an unfavorable opinion of Joe Biden. Greater Georgia, launched by former U.S. Senator Kelly Loeffler in 2021, is a 501(c4) nonpartisan nonprofit dedicated to growing participation in the democratic process by mobilizing and empowering voters. The group works year-round to educate and register voters, engage with diverse and underrepresented communities, and protect election integrity. ### Media Contact: press@greatergeorgia.com
ATLANTA – In case you missed it, Greater Georgia commissioned a recent poll of likely and Republican voters across the state ahead of the 2024 election. The poll, conducted by Guidant Polling & Strategy, delved into key areas such as the economy, public safety, and other issues of the day - including the Atlanta Public Safety Training Center, school vouchers, and election integrity reform. As the pollsters noted in their memo, the poll shows strong support for conservative leadership at the state level - and deep dissatisfaction with the status quo in Washington. Read recent coverage about the poll from James Magazine HERE , or view excerpts below. You can also view the full memo HERE . “The basic conservative principles of economic opportunity, safety, and freedom cut across party lines – resonating not only with traditional Republican primary voters, but also with moderates and independents. From education to crime and immigration, to the economy, Republicans at the state level are winning on the issues – in contrast to the unpopular policies of Joe Biden and the Democratic Party. “As we enter the 2024 election cycle, the good news for Republicans is that candidates on the ballot in Georgia will not have to compromise on their conservative values to win a broad coalition of voters. Primary and swing voters alike view Georgia’s conservative leadership as a firewall to the chaos and big government policies of Washington – which means the path to victory relies on promoting the common-sense, conservative policies which are already a hallmark of this state.” Greater Georgia, launched by former U.S. Senator Kelly Loeffler in 2021, is a 501(c4) nonpartisan nonprofit dedicated to growing participation in the democratic process by mobilizing and empowering voters. The group works year-round to educate and register voters, engage with diverse and underrepresented communities, and protect election integrity. ### Media Contact: press@greatergeorgia.com
ATLANTA – Yesterday, Greater Georgia exposed Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger for only clocking into work 42 times this year, even amid an as-yet unaddressed cybersecurity exposure affecting Georgia's voting machines. Today, state lawmakers echoed those same concerns at a Senate Ethics hearing - where they had planned to question Secretary Raffensperger about his refusal to fix the well-publicized vulnerabilities within Georgia's election infrastructure. The only problem is, Secretary Raffensperger didn't show up - either for the hearing or for a press conference called by his own office earlier in the day. Instead, Secretary of State staff members faced over two hours of questions about why the state had not made plans to fix the security exposures they had known about since 2021, why there wasn't more urgency to do so ahead of a presidential election year, and where the Secretary has been. The oversight panel criticized the Secretary for taking a wait-and-see approach to cybersecurity, for failing to request the funds he needed to fix the machines, and for not giving his full time or energy to defending Georgia's elections. State Senator Randy Robertson summed it up : "There's a lot of times that we look around the Secretary of State's office. I'm talking about the individual who's elected to hold that office. He's a ghost. Today he's at a rotary meeting to speak down in south Georgia...the Chairman notified him of [this hearing] a month ago...if that rotary meeting was more important than coming up here and speaking in front of the Georgia citizens that are watching this, then that's his burden to bear. But these questions that we ask are not for your benefit or for our benefit - as much as they are for the men and women who lost confidence in the Georgia election system." Yesterday, Greater Georgia Chairwoman Kelly Loeffler had a similar message when she called on the Secretary of State to get back to work: "Voters are entrusting our elections to a Secretary of State who has spent more time glad-handing liberal elites and attacking conservatives as ‘election deniers’ than addressing legitimate security issues. This is not a partisan issue - it’s about accountability in a battleground state that will decide the next U.S. President. Ensuring secure elections is not a job that can be done from the green room of MSNBC; right now, with critical security vulnerabilities exposed to the world, this state needs our top elections official to get back to work for the voters of Georgia.” Greater Georgia, launched by former U.S. Senator Kelly Loeffler in 2021, is a 501(c4) nonpartisan nonprofit dedicated to growing participation in the democratic process by mobilizing and empowering voters. The group works year-round to educate and register voters, engage with diverse and underrepresented communities, and protect election integrity. ### Media Contact: press@greatergeorgia.com
ATLANTA – Today, following the release of a new report by the Washington Examiner , Greater Georgia Chairwoman Kelly Loeffler called on Georgia’s top election official to return to his taxpayer-funded job and direct his full attention to ensuring election integrity - starting by fixing known security vulnerabilities in Georgia’s voting machines. Earlier this year, Greater Georgia and other groups called on Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger to fix a critical security vulnerability in Georgia’s voting machines before the 2024 election. Secretary Raffensperger, whose office had been aware of the vulnerabilities since 2021, announced that he would not update the machines until at least 2025, citing a lack of time - despite his advanced notice and the fact that several other states had already taken steps to implement the patch. But according to open records obtained by Greater Georgia and verified by the Washington Examiner , Raffensperger may have been able to execute the update had it been prioritized over cross-country trips to appear with celebrities, Democrat elites, and liberal media. Georgia’s top elections official has been to his office 42 days in the first nine months of 2023, averaging five days per month and four hours per visit. Raffensperger, who collects a taxpayer-funded salary of nearly $130,000 plus benefits, has spent about 70% of all work days out of office since 2021. Over the last few months, Raffensperger has instead attended the White House Correspondents’ Dinner in D.C., the South by Southwest Conference in Austin, and the 2024 Campaign Journalism Conference in Chicago - managing to score interviews with MSNBC and others. He was recently announced as a headliner for an L.A. conference alongside Hollywood celebs Ed Helms and Michael Douglas. “Voters are entrusting our elections to a Secretary of State who has spent more time glad-handing liberal elites and attacking conservatives as ‘election deniers’ than addressing legitimate security iss ues,” said Greater Georgia Chairwoman Kelly Loeffler. “This is not a partisan issue - it’s about accountability in a battleground state that will decide the next U.S. President. Ensuring secure elections is not a job that can be done from the green room of MSNBC; right now, with critical security vulnerabilities exposed to the world, this state needs our top elections official to get back to work for the voters of Georgia.” In 2021, Georgia’s Secretary of State became the first official in the nation to learn about vulnerabilities in the Dominion software - when the University of Michigan audited the state’s voting machines as part of a lawsuit. The Department of Homeland Security then issued a security advisory in June 2022, urging every state to fix the vulnerabilities “as soon as possible.” Dominion subsequently distributed a software update, which was approved for nationwide implementation in March 2023. Within months, several states including Colorado , Michigan , and Washington independently tested and certified the software update. Michigan announced plans to update its machines in full before the 2024 presidential primary. By contrast, Georgia’s Secretary of State announced he would not implement the update for another two years. To date, the Secretary’s office has not provided a clear timeline or cost estimate for the update and has failed to request funds for it in both the 2022 and 2023 legislative sessions. The office has, however, spent time lashing out at those who have called for the update, including a broad range of cybersecurity and election experts, as “election-denying conspiracy theorists.” They insist that the existing election system is “safe, secure, and accurate” - and have similarly failed to address recent episodes, even in the last two weeks, of early voting failures in DeKalb , Fulton , and Henry Counties. Greater Georgia, launched by former U.S. Senator Kelly Loeffler in 2021, is a 501(c4) nonpartisan nonprofit dedicated to growing participation in the democratic process by mobilizing and empowering voters. The group works year-round to educate and register voters, engage with diverse and underrepresented communities, and protect election integrity. ### Media Contact: press@greatergeorgia.com