Georgia officials revealed on Tuesday that 1,000 residents voted twice in the state’s June primary, with both absentee ballots and in-person voting. Georgia classifies double-voting as a felony, punishable by a $100,000 fine and up to 10 years in prison, Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger said on Tuesday, via the Atlanta Journal Constitution (AJC):
“A double voter knows exactly what they’re doing, diluting the votes of each and every voter that follows the law,” Raffensperger said during a press conference at the state Capitol. “Those that make the choice to game the system are breaking the law. And as secretary of state, I will not tolerate it.”
BREAKING: Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger announced Tuesday that 1,000 Georgians voted twice in the state’s June 9 primary, a felony that he said will be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law: https://t.co/3arrYkiAQl #gapol
— Mark Niesse (@markniesse) September 8, 2020
AJC: Georgia secretary of state announces 1,000 people voted twice in June 9 primary
— Josh Caplan (@joshdcaplan) September 8, 2020
Approximately 150,000 voters requested absentee ballots but also voted in-person during Georgia's primary, also because a substantial number of voters did not receive their ballot in the mail. Raffensperger said that local election officials were able to catch most cases of double-voting.
Though Raffensperger said that no electoral outcomes were changed by the 1,000 cases of voter fraud, the Georgians involved in the illegal practice will be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law, by local prosecutors and Georgia’s attorney general, following investigations.