Two election workers in Fulton County, Georgia have been fired after they allegedly shred hundreds of voter registration applications. Reports of the workers' actions had prompted Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger to request the Justice Department to launch an official investigation into the matter.
In a press release Monday, Raffensperge expressed his disappointment in the years of "documented failure" in Fulton County elections. He added that the people of Georgia are tired of these scandals and the Department of Justice has to step in to investigate the state and its leadership.
Raffensperge said the "incompetence and malfeasance" of Georgia's leadership must be brought to light through an investigation. Raffensperge said his office has already launched an investigation into the reports. If the investigation finds enough evidence of irregularities and negligence, it could possible for Raffensperge's office to completely replace the leadership of Fulton County's elections under the state's new election integrity law.
A report from Fulton County Registration and Elections Director Richard Barron revealed that the two unidentified government employees had reportedly shred hundreds of applications instead of properly processing them. The incident comes just three weeks before residents are set to cast their votes in the upcoming municipal elections.
Two election workers in Georgia's heavily Democratic Fulton County were fired on Friday for shredding voter registration forms that were awaiting processing before November elections, likely adding fuel to a Republican-led investigation of the office. https://t.co/iByIgqcV2b — The New York Times (@nytimes) October 12, 2021
Fulton County includes most voters in the city of Atlanta. Voters are expected to cast their votes on Nov. 2 to elect new mayors, city council members, and other municipal officials. The deadline for voter registrations expired on Oct. 4.
The incident was reported to Fulton County officials by the two workers' colleagues last week. They were reportedly fired on Friday. The destroyed applications included those that were received by the county over the last two weeks.
Fulton County Commission Chairman Robb Pitts slammed the workers' actions and stated that they are committed to transparency and integrity. He said ensuring fair elections in the county is one of the most important functions of the local government.
Fulton County election officials said that voters who may have been impacted by the incident and those that find that they are not registered on Election Day despite submitting an application will still be allowed to vote by using a provisional ballot. In the meantime, separate investigations will attempt to determine which voters were affected to possibly contact them individually.
