(ATLANTA, Ga.) — Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger and voting rights activist groups VoteAmerica, et al., have announced a settlement over SB-202, the bill advertised as tightening election security in Georgia. Plaintiff VoteAmerica agreed to withdraw its claims in court.

Signed into law in 2021, SB-202 has caused controversy. Voting rights groups allege that it limits the ability of nonprofits to distribute absentee ballot applications to Georgia voters, in violation of the First Amendment.

“The team at VoteAmerica is celebrating this win for voters,” says Daniel McCarthy, VP of Finance and Operations for VoteAmerica. “VoteAmerica stands firmly in its position that Georgia’s interference in our association with and assistance to Georgia voters who request it is anti-democratic and unconstitutional.”

The office of Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger is also claiming a victory, stating that “Despite the overheated rhetoric to the contrary by President Bidem, Stacey Abrams, and their progressive allies, Georgia’s Election Integrity Act contains common-sense reforms like photo-ID for all forms of voting.”

The State of Georgia has also agreed to resolve the claims of the plaintiff, affirming that the restrictions on absentee ballot application distribution do not apply to organizations like VoteAmerica.

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