Case: Georgia State Conference of the NAACP. v. Kemp

2:16-cv-00219 | U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Georgia

Filed Date: Sept. 14, 2016

Closed Date: March 28, 2017

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Case Summary

This is a case about the constitutionality of Georgia’s “exact match” voter registration policy. On September 14, 2016, the Georgia State Conference of the NAACP, Asian Americans Advancing Justice – Atlanta, and the Georgia Coalition for the Peoples’ Agenda sued Georgia’s Secretary of State in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Georgia before Senior District Judge William C. O’Kelley. Georgia law required a voting applicant’s name, date of birth, and driver’s license number or…

This is a case about the constitutionality of Georgia’s “exact match” voter registration policy.

On September 14, 2016, the Georgia State Conference of the NAACP, Asian Americans Advancing Justice – Atlanta, and the Georgia Coalition for the Peoples’ Agenda sued Georgia’s Secretary of State in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Georgia before Senior District Judge William C. O’Kelley. Georgia law required a voting applicant’s name, date of birth, and driver’s license number or last four digits of their Social Security number to match exactly with existing Georgia Department of Driver Services (“DDS”) or Social Security Administration (“SSA”) records. If this identifying information differed, even if by a single character, the voter’s application would be automatically canceled unless the applicant corrected the mismatch within forty days. The plaintiffs alleged that this policy violated Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act (“VRA”) and the First and Fourteenth Amendments, arguing that applications submitted by minority voters were disproportionately placed into “pending” or “cancelled” status because their information failed to match with corresponding data fields from the DDS or SSA databases. Represented by Project Vote, the Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law, Campaign Legal Center, the Voting Rights Institute of the Georgetown University Law Center, and private pro bono counsel, the voting rights groups sought a declaratory judgment that Georgia’s verification protocol violated the fundamental right to vote under the First and Fourteenth Amendments and Section 2 of the VRA; a preliminary or permanent injunction prohibiting enforcement of the policy; and attorneys’ fees and costs.

Alongside the complaint, the plaintiffs filed a motion for a preliminary injunction requesting that the defendant give all voters whose applications were pending or cancelled for failure to match with information in the DDS or SSA databases the ability to vote in the 2016 election upon presentation of appropriate identification at the polls. The plaintiffs also filed a motion to expedite discovery, requesting that the court order the defendant to produce a current version of the statewide voter file and cancelled voter list on a weekly basis until November 8, 2016.

On September 23, 2016, counsel for the defendant informed the court that the state had agreed to suspend the exact-match requirement and reinstate “cancelled” applications dating back to October 2014 as “pending,” allowing voters whose information did not match to vote if they presented identification at the polls. Accordingly, the plaintiffs voluntarily withdrew their motion for a preliminary injunction on the same date.

On February 8, 2017, the parties signed a settlement agreement. As indicated in the notice to the court, the defendant agreed that applicants from October 1, 2013 onward whose information failed to match would be able to vote if they presented identification at the polls. The defendant also agreed to send notifications to voters with mismatched information or cancelled applications to alert them to the issue. Finally, the defendant agreed to pay plaintiffs' counsel $95,000 in attorneys' fees and costs, and to periodically provide updated records listing canceled, pending, and rejected voters to the voting rights organizations until December 31, 2018.

The public settlement agreement provided for a stipulation of dismissal with prejudice, which the organizations filed, and the court approved, on March 28, 2017. The case is closed.

	Document
4-1 2:16-cv-00219	Memorandum of Law in Support of Plaintiffs' Motion for Preliminary Injunction Georgia State Conference of the NAACP, et al. v. Kemp	Sept. 14, 2016	Sept. 14, 2016 Pleading / Motion / Brief
3 2:16-cv-00219	Plaintiffs' Emergency Motion for Preliminary Injunction Georgia State Conference of the NAACP v. Kemp	Sept. 14, 2016	Sept. 14, 2016 Pleading / Motion / Brief
5 2:16-cv-00219	Plaintiffs' Motion for Expedited Discovery and Memorandum of Law in Support Georgia State Conference of the NAACP v. Kemp	Sept. 14, 2016	Sept. 14, 2016 Pleading / Motion / Brief
1 2:16-cv-00219	Complaint Georgia State Conference of the NAACP v. Kemp	Sept. 14, 2016	Sept. 14, 2016 Complaint
45 2:16-cv-00219	Letter to Court pursuant to Court directive in advance of hearing on Motion for Preliminary Injunction Georgia State Conference of the NAACP v. Kemp	Sept. 23, 2016	Sept. 23, 2016 Correspondence
52 2:16-cv-00219	Order Georgia State Conference of the NAACP, et al. v. Kemp	Sept. 28, 2016	Sept. 28, 2016 Order/Opinion
	Settlement Agreement Georgia State Conference of the NAACP v. Kemp No Court	Feb. 8, 2017	Feb. 8, 2017 Settlement Agreement
60 2:16-cv-00219	Stipulation of Dismissal with Prejudice Georgia State Conference of the NAACP, et al. v. Kemp	March 28, 2017	March 28, 2017 Other

Title	Description		External URL Date / External URL
Cases & Actions: Georgia State Conference of the NAACP v. Kemp Campaign Legal Center	Summary of case written by plaintiffs' counsel, nonprofit organization Campaign Legal Center.	April 13, 2021	April 13, 2021 https://campaignlegal.org/...
Georgia State Conference of the NAACP, et al. v. Brian Kemp Lawyers' Committee for Civil Rights Under Law	Summary of case written by plaintiffs' counsel, the Lawyers' Committee for Civil Rights Under Law.	Oct. 7, 2016	Oct. 7, 2016 https://www.lawyerscommittee.org/...
Georgia State Conference of the NAACP v. Kemp	In 2016, Advancing Justice-Atlanta and several other civil rights organizations sued the Georgia Secretary of State over Georgia’s “exact match” voter registration verification process. The “exact ma…	Sept. 13, 2016	Sept. 13, 2016 https://www.advancingjustice-atlanta.org/...

ECF Number	Description	Date	Link Date / Link
1	COMPLAINT, filed by Georgia State Conference of the NAACP, Asian Americans Advancing Justice-Atlanta, Inc., Georgia Coalition for the Peoples' Agenda, Inc.. ( Filing fee $ 400.00 receipt number 113E-6695327.) (Attachments: # 1 Exhibit 1, # 2 Exhibit 2, # 3 Exhibit 3, # 4 Exhibit 4, # 5 Civil Cover Sheet)(rsg) Please visit our website at http://www.gand.uscourts.gov/commonly-used-forms to obtain Pretrial Instructions which includes the Consent To Proceed Before U.S. Magistrate form. (Entered: 09/14/2016) 1 Exhibit 1 View on RECAP 2 Exhibit 2 View on RECAP 3 Exhibit 3 View on RECAP 4 Exhibit 4 View on PACER 5 Civil Cover Sheet View on PACER	Sept. 14, 2016	Sept. 14, 2016 Clearinghouse
	Submission to District Judge	Sept. 14, 2016	Sept. 14, 2016 PACER
2	Electronic Summons Issued as to Brian Kemp. (rsg) (Entered: 09/14/2016)	Sept. 14, 2016	Sept. 14, 2016 PACER
3	WITHDRAWN MOTION for Preliminary Injunction by Asian Americans Advancing Justice-Atlanta, Inc., Georgia Coalition for the Peoples' Agenda, Inc., Georgia State Conference of the NAACP. (Attachments: # 1 Exhibit 1, # 2 Exhibit 2, # 3 Exhibit 3, # 4 Exhibit 4 - Bartlett Declaration, # 5 Exhibit 1 to Bartlett Declaration, # 6 Exhibit 2 to Bartlett Declaration, # 7 Exhibit 3 to Bartlett Declaration, # 8 Exhibit 4 to Bartlett Declaration, # 9 Exhibit 5 to Bartlett Declaration, # 10 Exhibit 6(a) to Bartlett Declaration, # 11 Exhibit 6(b) to Bartlett Declaration, # 12 Exhibit 7 to Bartlett Declaration, # 13 Exhibit 8 to Bartlett Declaration, # 14 Exhibit 9 to Bartlett Declaration, # 15 Exhibit 10 to Bartlett Declaration, # 16 Exhibit 11 to Bartlett Declaration, # 17 Exhibit 12 to Bartlett Declaration, # 18 Exhibit 13 to Bartlett Declaration, # 19 Exhibit 5, # 20 Exhibit 6, # 21 Exhibit 7, # 22 Exhibit 8 - Houck Declaration, # 23 Exhibit 1 to Houck Declaration, # 24 Exhibit 2 to Houck Declaration, # 25 Exhibit 3 to Houck Declaration, # 26 Exhibit 4 to Houck Declaration, # 27 Exhibit 5 to Houck Declaration, # 28 Exhibit 6 to Houck Declaration, # 29 Exhibit 7 to Houck Declaration, # 30 Exhibit 9, # 31 Exhibit 10, # 32 Text of Proposed Order)(rsg) Modified on 9/28/2016 to add notation of Withdraw per order granting plaintiff's motion to withdraw (sk). (Entered: 09/14/2016) 1 Exhibit 1 View on PACER 2 Exhibit 2 View on PACER 3 Exhibit 3 View on PACER 4 Exhibit 4 - Bartlett Declaration View on PACER 5 Exhibit 1 to Bartlett Declaration View on PACER 6 Exhibit 2 to Bartlett Declaration View on PACER 7 Exhibit 3 to Bartlett Declaration View on PACER 8 Exhibit 4 to Bartlett Declaration View on PACER 9 Exhibit 5 to Bartlett Declaration View on PACER 10 Exhibit 6(a) to Bartlett Declaration View on PACER 11 Exhibit 6(b) to Bartlett Declaration View on PACER 12 Exhibit 7 to Bartlett Declaration View on PACER 13 Exhibit 8 to Bartlett Declaration View on PACER 14 Exhibit 9 to Bartlett Declaration View on PACER 15 Exhibit 10 to Bartlett Declaration View on PACER 16 Exhibit 11 to Bartlett Declaration View on PACER 17 Exhibit 12 to Bartlett Declaration View on PACER 18 Exhibit 13 to Bartlett Declaration View on PACER 19 Exhibit 5 View on PACER 20 Exhibit 6 View on PACER 21 Exhibit 7 View on PACER 22 Exhibit 8 - Houck Declaration View on PACER 23 Exhibit 1 to Houck Declaration View on PACER 24 Exhibit 2 to Houck Declaration View on PACER 25 Exhibit 3 to Houck Declaration View on PACER 26 Exhibit 4 to Houck Declaration View on PACER 27 Exhibit 5 to Houck Declaration View on PACER 28 Exhibit 6 to Houck Declaration View on PACER 29 Exhibit 7 to Houck Declaration View on PACER 30 Exhibit 9 View on PACER 31 Exhibit 10 View on PACER 32 Text of Proposed Order View on PACER	Sept. 14, 2016	Sept. 14, 2016 Clearinghouse
	Submission of 3 MOTION for Preliminary Injunction, to District Judge William C. O'Kelley. (rsg)	Sept. 14, 2016	Sept. 14, 2016 PACER
4	MOTION for Leave to File Brief in Excess of Page Limitation with Brief In Support by Asian Americans Advancing Justice-Atlanta, Inc., Georgia Coalition for the Peoples' Agenda, Inc., Georgia State Conference of the NAACP. (Attachments: # 1 Brief Memorandum in Support of Motion for Preliminary Injunction, # 2 Text of Proposed Order)(rsg) (Entered: 09/14/2016) 1 Brief Memorandum in Support of Motion for Preliminary Injunction View on RECAP 2 Text of Proposed Order View on PACER	Sept. 14, 2016	Sept. 14, 2016 PACER
5	MOTION to Expedite Discovery by Asian Americans Advancing Justice-Atlanta, Inc., Georgia Coalition for the Peoples' Agenda, Inc., Georgia State Conference of the NAACP. (Attachments: # 1 Text of Proposed Order)(rsg) (Entered: 09/14/2016) 1 Text of Proposed Order View on PACER	Sept. 14, 2016	Sept. 14, 2016 Clearinghouse
6	Certificate of Interested Persons and Corporate Disclosure Statement by Asian Americans Advancing Justice-Atlanta, Inc.. (rsg) (Entered: 09/14/2016)	Sept. 14, 2016	Sept. 14, 2016 PACER
7	Certificate of Interested Persons and Corporate Disclosure Statement by Georgia Coalition for the Peoples' Agenda, Inc.. (rsg) (Entered: 09/14/2016)	Sept. 14, 2016	Sept. 14, 2016 PACER
8	Certificate of Interested Persons and Corporate Disclosure Statement by Georgia State Conference of the NAACP. (rsg) (Entered: 09/14/2016)	Sept. 14, 2016	Sept. 14, 2016 PACER
9	Letter from Clerk re: LR 83.1 Pro Hac Vice requirements sent to Ezra D. Rosenberg. Clerk to follow-up by 10/14/2016. (rsg) (Entered: 09/14/2016)	Sept. 14, 2016	Sept. 14, 2016 PACER
10	Letter from Clerk re: LR 83.1 Pro Hac Vice requirements sent to Julia Houk. Clerk to follow-up by 10/14/2016. (rsg) (Entered: 09/14/2016)	Sept. 14, 2016	Sept. 14, 2016 PACER
11	Letter from Clerk re: LR 83.1 Pro Hac Vice requirements sent to John Powers. Clerk to follow-up by 10/14/2016. (rsg) (Entered: 09/14/2016)	Sept. 14, 2016	Sept. 14, 2016 PACER
12	Letter from Clerk re: LR 83.1 Pro Hac Vice requirements sent to Michelle Kanter Cohen. Clerk to follow-up by 10/14/2016. (rsg) (Entered: 09/14/2016)	Sept. 14, 2016	Sept. 14, 2016 PACER
13	Letter from Clerk re: LR 83.1 Pro Hac Vice requirements sent to Sarah Brannon. Clerk to follow-up by 10/14/2016. (rsg) (Entered: 09/14/2016)	Sept. 14, 2016	Sept. 14, 2016 PACER
14	Letter from Clerk re: LR 83.1 Pro Hac Vice requirements sent to Niyati Shah. Clerk to follow-up by 10/14/2016. (rsg) (Entered: 09/14/2016)	Sept. 14, 2016	Sept. 14, 2016 PACER
15	Letter from Clerk re: LR 83.1 Pro Hac Vice requirements sent to Gregory Farrell. Clerk to follow-up by 10/14/2016. (rsg) (Entered: 09/14/2016)	Sept. 14, 2016	Sept. 14, 2016 PACER
16	Letter from Clerk re: LR 83.1 Pro Hac Vice requirements sent to David Wiltenburg. Clerk to follow-up by 10/14/2016. (rsg) (Entered: 09/14/2016)	Sept. 14, 2016	Sept. 14, 2016 PACER
17	Letter from Clerk re: LR 83.1 Pro Hac Vice requirements Vilia Hayes. Clerk to follow-up by 10/14/2016. (rsg) (Entered: 09/14/2016)	Sept. 14, 2016	Sept. 14, 2016 PACER
18	Letter from Clerk re: LR 83.1 Pro Hac Vice requirements J. Gerald Hebert. Clerk to follow-up by 10/14/2016. (rsg) (Entered: 09/14/2016)	Sept. 14, 2016	Sept. 14, 2016 PACER
19	Letter from Clerk re: LR 83.1 Pro Hac Vice requirements Danielle Lang. Clerk to follow-up by 10/14/2016. (rsg) (Entered: 09/14/2016)	Sept. 14, 2016	Sept. 14, 2016 PACER
20	Letter from Clerk re: LR 83.1 Pro Hac Vice requirements Aderson B. Francois. Clerk to follow-up by 10/14/2016. (rsg) (Entered: 09/14/2016)	Sept. 14, 2016	Sept. 14, 2016 PACER
21	APPLICATION for Admission of David Wiltenburg Pro Hac Vice (Application fee $ 150, receipt number 113E-6697907)by Asian Americans Advancing Justice-Atlanta, Inc., Georgia Coalition for the Peoples' Agenda, Inc., Georgia State Conference of the NAACP. (Cobb, James) (Entered: 09/14/2016)	Sept. 14, 2016	Sept. 14, 2016 PACER
22	APPLICATION for Admission of Gregory Farrell Pro Hac Vice (Application fee $ 150, receipt number 113E-6697926)by Asian Americans Advancing Justice-Atlanta, Inc., Georgia Coalition for the Peoples' Agenda, Inc., Georgia State Conference of the NAACP. (Cobb, James) (Entered: 09/14/2016)	Sept. 14, 2016	Sept. 14, 2016 PACER
23	APPLICATION for Admission of Vilia Hayes Pro Hac Vice (Application fee $ 150, receipt number 113E-6697928)by Asian Americans Advancing Justice-Atlanta, Inc., Georgia Coalition for the Peoples' Agenda, Inc., Georgia State Conference of the NAACP. (Cobb, James) (Entered: 09/14/2016)	Sept. 14, 2016	Sept. 14, 2016 PACER
24	APPLICATION for Admission of Julie Marie Houk Pro Hac Vice (Application fee $ 150, receipt number 113E-6697936)by Asian Americans Advancing Justice-Atlanta, Inc., Georgia Coalition for the Peoples' Agenda, Inc., Georgia State Conference of the NAACP. (Cobb, James) (Entered: 09/14/2016)	Sept. 14, 2016	Sept. 14, 2016 PACER
25	APPLICATION for Admission of Aderson B. Francois Pro Hac Vice (Application fee $ 150, receipt number 113E-6697957)by Asian Americans Advancing Justice-Atlanta, Inc., Georgia Coalition for the Peoples' Agenda, Inc., Georgia State Conference of the NAACP. (Cobb, James) (Entered: 09/14/2016)	Sept. 14, 2016	Sept. 14, 2016 PACER
26	APPLICATION for Admission of John Michael Powers Pro Hac Vice (Application fee $ 150, receipt number 113E-6697968)by Asian Americans Advancing Justice-Atlanta, Inc., Georgia Coalition for the Peoples' Agenda, Inc., Georgia State Conference of the NAACP. (Cobb, James) (Entered: 09/14/2016)	Sept. 14, 2016	Sept. 14, 2016 PACER
27	Minute Entry for proceedings held before Judge William C. O'Kelley: Telephone Conference held on 9/14/2016 re Plaintiff's 3 Motion for Preliminary Injunction. (Evidentiary Hearing set for 9/26/2016 at 09:30 AM in GAIN Courtroom 303 before Judge William C. O'Kelley.). (Court Reporter Wynette Blathers)(sk) (Entered: 09/15/2016)	Sept. 14, 2016	Sept. 14, 2016 PACER
28	APPLICATION for Admission of Niyati Shah Pro Hac Vice (Application fee $ 150, receipt number 113E-6699162)by Asian Americans Advancing Justice-Atlanta, Inc., Georgia Coalition for the Peoples' Agenda, Inc., Georgia State Conference of the NAACP. (Cobb, James) (Entered: 09/15/2016)	Sept. 15, 2016	Sept. 15, 2016 PACER
29	APPLICATION for Admission of Michelle E. Kanter Cohen Pro Hac Vice (Application fee $ 150, receipt number 113E-6699172)by Asian Americans Advancing Justice-Atlanta, Inc., Georgia Coalition for the Peoples' Agenda, Inc., Georgia State Conference of the NAACP. (Cobb, James) (Entered: 09/15/2016)	Sept. 15, 2016	Sept. 15, 2016 PACER
30	APPLICATION for Admission of Sarah E. Brannon Pro Hac Vice (Application fee $ 150, receipt number 113E-6699176)by Asian Americans Advancing Justice-Atlanta, Inc., Georgia Coalition for the Peoples' Agenda, Inc., Georgia State Conference of the NAACP. (Cobb, James) (Entered: 09/15/2016)	Sept. 15, 2016	Sept. 15, 2016 PACER
31	APPLICATION for Admission of Danielle M. Lang Pro Hac Vice (Application fee $ 150, receipt number 113E-6701582)by Asian Americans Advancing Justice-Atlanta, Inc., Georgia Coalition for the Peoples' Agenda, Inc., Georgia State Conference of the NAACP. (Cobb, James) (Entered: 09/16/2016)	Sept. 16, 2016	Sept. 16, 2016 PACER
32	APPLICATION for Admission of Joseph Gerald Herbert Pro Hac Vice (Application fee $ 150, receipt number 113E-6702900)by Asian Americans Advancing Justice-Atlanta, Inc., Georgia Coalition for the Peoples' Agenda, Inc., Georgia State Conference of the NAACP. (Cobb, James) (Entered: 09/16/2016)	Sept. 16, 2016	Sept. 16, 2016 PACER
	Order on Motion for Leave to File	Sept. 19, 2016	Sept. 19, 2016 PACER
	DOCKET ORDER granting 4 Motion for Leave to File Brief in Excess of Page Limitation. Entered by Judge William C. O'Kelley on 09/19/2016. (dww)	Sept. 19, 2016	Sept. 19, 2016 PACER
	Order on Motion to Expedite	Sept. 19, 2016	Sept. 19, 2016 PACER
	DOCKET ORDER granting 5 Motion to Expedite Discovery. Entered by Judge William C. O'Kelley on 09/19/2016. (dww)	Sept. 19, 2016	Sept. 19, 2016 PACER
33	AFFIDAVIT of Service for Summons and Complaint for Injunctive and Declaratory Relief; Civil Case Filing Information Form; Emergency Motion for Preliminary Injunction; Emergency Motion for Expedited Discovery; Emergency Motion for Leave to File Brief in Excess of Page Limitation; Certificate of Interested Persons and Corporate Disclosure Statement for GA State Conference of the NAACP; Certificate of Interested Persons and Corporate Disclosure Statement for Asian American Advancing Justice-Atlanta, Inc.; Certificate of Interested Persons and Corporate Disclosure Statement for GA Coalition for the Peoples' Agenda, Inc.;, as to Defendant Brian Kemp. (Cobb, James) (Entered: 09/19/2016)	Sept. 19, 2016	Sept. 19, 2016 PACER
34	NOTICE of Appearance by Russell D. Willard on behalf of Brian Kemp (Willard, Russell) (Entered: 09/20/2016)	Sept. 20, 2016	Sept. 20, 2016 PACER

Case: Georgia State Conference of the NAACP. v. Kemp

2:16-cv-00219 | U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Georgia

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