Georgia Governor Brian Kemp (R-GA) joined other GOP governors in publicly opposing vaccine passports. The proposed passports, an invention of the Biden administration, are intended to serve as a mechanism to show proof of vaccination; Democrat governors have indicated that such proof may be necessary to partake in public events and utilize taxpayer-funded resources.
Kemp said that he does not and will not support a state-mandated vaccine passport in order for his constituents to return to normal life, and emphasized that receiving the COVID vaccine should be a decision left to the individual.
“I do not and will not support any kind of state-mandated vaccine passport. While the development of multiple safe, highly effective COVID-19 vaccines has been a scientific miracle, the decision to receive the vaccine should be left up to each individual," Kemp wrote on Twitter, while still encouraging Georgians to register to receive the COVID vaccine if they so choose.
I do not and will not support any kind of state-mandated vaccine passport. While the development of multiple safe, highly effective COVID-19 vaccines has been a scientific miracle, the decision to receive the vaccine should be left up to each individual.
— Governor Brian P. Kemp (@GovKemp) April 6, 2021
Republican Governors Ron DeSantis (FL), Greg Abbott (TX), Henry McMaster (SC), Kim Reynolds (IA), and Pete Ricketts (NE) also oppose government-mandated vaccine passports. Many of these same Republican governors liberated their states' economies from lockdown restrictions, while Democrat-run states continued to issue stay-at-home edicts. On the other hand, Democrat Governors Phil Murphy (NJ) and Gavin Newsom (CA) have indicated that their citizens may be required to show proof of vaccination in order to return to normal life.