Case: Democratic Party of Georgia v. Georgia

This is a case about whether polls for early voting in Georgia runoffs could be open on a Saturday following a holiday.  

On November 14, 2022, three plaintiffs, the Democratic Party of Georgia, the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee, and the campaign committee for Senator Raphael Warnock (D-GA) filed suit in the Superior Court of Fulton County, Georgia against the defendant state of Georgia.  The plaintiffs—all represented by the same private counsel—claimed that Georgia state law did not prohibit counties from having early voting for a runoff on the Saturday after Thanksgiving, November 26, 2022.  The plaintiffs sought a declaration from the Court and an order enjoining Georgia from instructing its counties that they could not hold early voting on that Saturday and from interfering in any effort to provide such early voting. The case was assigned to Judge Thomas A. Cox, Jr.

On November 8, 2022, Georgia held an election for one of its U.S. Senate seats. Neither of the top two finishers in that vote—Raphael Warnock (D) and Herschel Walker (R)—obtained a majority of the vote.  The result triggered a runoff election with election day on Tuesday, December 6, 2022.

Section 21-2-385(d) of the Official Code of Georgia Annotated provided for a period of early voting for each “primary, election, or runoff” in Georgia.  Section 21-2-385(d)(1) allowed for counties in Georgia to choose to hold in-person early voting on Saturdays and Sundays before election day.  However, that section also contained an exception prohibiting early voting from being conducted on the Saturday two Saturdays before election day if it followed a state holiday that Thursday or Friday.  In such cases, the county would need to conduct early voting on the third Saturday “prior to such primary or election.”  Georgia law also required counties to publish the availability of early voting at least seven days prior to the start of early voting.

With the runoff election day on Tuesday, December 6, 2022, the date two Saturdays before election day was November 26, 2022.  The previous Thursday and Friday, however, were state holidays under Georgia law (Thanksgiving and observance of Thanksgiving).

On November 12, 2022, the Secretary of State of Georgia issued a bulletin to county election officials regarding O.C.G.A § 21-2-385(d)(1), stating that early voting on Saturday, November 26, 2022 was “not allowed.”

Two days after the Secretary of State’s bulletin, on November 14, 2022, the plaintiffs filed a complaint in the Superior Court of Fulton County, Georgia against defendant Georgia.  The plaintiffs sought a declaration that O.C.G.A § 21-2-385(d)(1) did not prohibit voting on Saturday, November 26, 2022 and an order enjoining Georgia from instructing its counties that they could not hold early voting on that Saturday and from interfering in any effort to provide such early voting.  Simultaneous with the complaint, the plaintiffs filed an emergency motion for a temporary restraining order seeking the same declaration and an injunction.

On November 16, 2022, the motion to intervene as defendants filed by Georgia Republican Party, National Republican Senatorial Committee, and Republican National Committee (all represented by the same private counsel) was granted.

On November 18, 2022, Judge Thomas A. Cox, Jr. granted plaintiffs’ motion and declared that O.C.G.A § 21-2-385(d)(1) did not prohibit early voting on Saturday, November 26, 2022.  The trial court reasoned that the statute’s use of “primary, election, or runoff” created three categories that could be affected by the Saturday-holiday exception.  The Saturday-holiday exception, however, only referenced “such primary or election”—not runoff—when stating that Saturday voting would occur on the third Saturday before the election if the second Saturday followed a holiday.  Because a runoff was not mentioned, the holiday exception did not apply to runoffs.

The Court enjoined Georgia from interfering in counties’ efforts to conduct early voting on Saturday, November 26, 2022 or otherwise prevent such votes from being cast or counted.  The Court also enjoined Georgia from interfering because of any purported violation of the requirement that counties give seven days-notice of early voting.

On November 21, 2022, Georgia and the intervening defendants appealed to the Courts of Appeals of the State of Georgia and both sought emergency stays to prevent the trial court’s order from going into effect. That same day, the appellate court denied the motions.

The next day, November 22, 2022, the defendant intervenors asked the Supreme Court of Georgia to review the appellate court’s denial and to stay the effect of the trial court’s order.  On November 23, 2022, the Georgia Supreme Court declined to review the orders.

The case is now closed.