Press Releases

April 28, 2004

Election Protection Program Kicks Off in Georgia
Program Seeks to Avoid Problems Experienced in 2000 Elections

(Atlanta, Georgia) – With six months remaining before this year’s presidential election, a coalition of volunteers will launch the Georgia Election Protection Program. The coalition is committed to mounting a massive voter assistance and education effort in 2004 to ensure that voters know their rights on election day. More information can be obtained during a May 4th press conference.

WHO: Georgia Election Protection Coalition
WHAT: Press Conference on Georgia Election Protection Program
WHEN: Tuesday, May 4, 2004, 10:00 AM (EST)
WHERE: State Capitol Building, South Wing
SPEAKERS: Felicia Davis – Executive Director, Benjamin E. Mays Educational Resource Center
Helen Butler – State Voter Empowerment Coordinator, GA Coalition for the People’s Agenda
Terrell Slayton – Assistant Secretary of State
Charles T. Lester – Former Co-Chair, Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law
Rev. Timothy McDonald – First Iconium Baptist Church

The Georgia Election Protection Program is part of a nationwide initiative that was created in the wake of the 2000 election fiasco in order to prevent voter disenfranchisement from being repeated in future elections. Over the past three years the coalition has successfully worked to ensure that voters in minority communities know their rights and have access to immediate legal advice and assistance on election day.

Coalition members include the following legal organizations - DeKalb Bar Association, Georgia Alliance of African American Attorneys, Georgia Asian Pacific American Bar Association, Georgia Association of Black Women Attorneys, Georgia Association for Women Lawyers, Georgia Hispanic Bar Association, Gate City Bar Association, Indus Bar of Georgia, Stonewall Bar Association, Women and Minorities in the Profession Committee-State Bar of Georgia, and the Lawyers' Committee for Civil Rights Under Law.

Leaders from Georgia’s legal community will facilitate a toll free hotline to answer questions and assist voters during this fall’s early voting period and on election day. “Volunteer attorneys will be on the ground monitoring selected polling places and will be available to intervene in person, place telephone calls to the appropriate officials to assist voters, or seek a court injunction if those measures become necessary,” said Charles T. Lester, a member of the Election Protection Committee.

In previous elections, the Election Protection Hotline has received steady calls and provided assistance to voters including: informing voters of their proper polling place; instructing voters on how to request provisional ballots; and contacting election board supervisors or state officials when necessary.

The activities of the Election Protection volunteers will be critical in 2004 as predictions of an extremely close presidential election, reminiscent of 2000, continue to grow. In addition to the presidential election, important congressional races, state ballot initiatives, and municipal elections will be held in November 2004. Potential confusion about new voting machines and state and federal election reform laws also creates an urgent need for the Election Protection Program.