Yahoo Finance Falcons owner Arthur Blank speaks out against Georgia voting restrictions
Amid calls for boycotts of Georgia sporting events, Atlanta Falcons owner Arthur Blank released a statement on Tuesday speaking against recently passed SB 202.
Georgia state legislators passed the bill last week before Gov. Brian Kemp signed it into law. The law limits the number of drop boxes across the state, increases voter ID requirements and gives state-level officials in Republican-controlled Georgia power over county election boards that oversee ballot counts.
Arthur Blank: 'Make voting easier, not harder'
In a statement released Tuesday, Blank described the right to vote as "sacred" while calling "to make voting easier, not harder."
"Every voice and every vote matters and should be heard through our democratic process in Georgia," Blank's statement reads. "The right to vote is simply sacred. We should be working to make voting easier, not harder for every eligible citizen.
"To that end, AMBSE leadership, along with our nonprofit partners, conveyed that ideal directly to state officials in recent weeks. Our businesses and family foundation will continue to actively support efforts that advance voting access for the citizens of Georgia and across the nation."
Calls to boycott Masters, MLB All-Star game
Blank's statement arrives amid calls to boycott Georgia sporting events such as the upcoming Masters golf tournament and the MLB All-Star game scheduled to take place in Cobb County this summer. There are also calls to boycott Georgia-based companies like Delta and Coca-Cola.
The NAACP is leading a coalition of civil rights groups suing to overturn the law, which makes it illegal for non-poll workers to provide food and water for people waiting in line to vote.
Georgia has made headlines in recent elections for hours-long voting lines in minority neighborhoods. The law was passed after a wave of minority voters flipped both U.S. Senate seats in Georgia from Republican to Democrat in a runoff election in January.
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