Our so-called "Great Uniter" delivered another divisive speech as a "final warning" before Election Day next week. This time, on Wednesday evening, President Joe Biden smeared GOP election reformists as bad actors that suppress voter rights.
CLAIM: During primetime remarks in the nation's capital, Biden accused "extreme MAGA Republicans" of attempting to "suppress the right of voters and subvert the electoral system itself." Biden claimed that "the extreme MAGA element of the Republican Party," which he called the "driving force" of the GOP, is "trying to succeed where they failed in 2020."
"That means denying your right to vote and deciding whether your vote even counts. Instead of waiting until an election is over, they're starting well before it. They are starting now," Biden stated in a televised appearance inside of crime-ridden Union Station's Columbus Club. "They've emboldened violence and intimidation of voters and election officials."
Biden accuses "extreme MAGA Republicans" of trying to "suppress the right of voters and subvert the electoral system itself...and deciding whether your vote even counts. Instead of waiting until an election is over...they're starting now." pic.twitter.com/HGT1TLFwa2
— Townhall.com (@townhallcom) November 2, 2022
FACTS: Biden, who endorsed election-denier Stacey Abrams for Georgia governor, has called the state's election reforms "Jim Crow 2.0," a label he said is literal, "not hyperbole...a fact." Last fall, Biden also likened Georgia's voter integrity law to "Jim Crow in the 21st century," but voter turnout has, so far, smashed midterm records in the Peach State.
Following the passage of Georgia's election integrity legislation, the 2 million mark for in-person voting will soon be broken. As of Thursday morning, on the second to last day for in-person early voting, Georgia's record-shattering turnout continues with almost 1.9 million voters casting ballots during the early-voting period. Georgia witnessed record turnout since the first day of early voting this year, surging to nearly twice the number on Day One of early voting in 2018.
Georgia, you did it! We’ve reached the 2 Million mark for total turnout, with over 2 Million early votes expected later this week. #GAVotes #GAVotesEarly pic.twitter.com/Zu03deAzjD
— GA Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger (@GaSecofState) November 2, 2022
"SB 202 expanded the number of early voting days in Georgia, and Georgia voters are taking advantage of that by early voting at a record pace," Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger declared in a press release Wednesday.
Back in May, there was historic turnout during the three weeks of early voting for Georgia's 2022 primaries, which outpaced the statistics seen in the state's 2018 and 2020 elections, that further debunks Biden's fear-mongering.
"Short lines, smooth easy ballot access, and confidence in ballot security" brought out more than 850,000 voters to cast a ballot in-person or return an absentee ballot, according to voting data from the Georgia secretary of state's office published in a May 21 press release. Compared to early-voting turnout in recent primaries, the figure represented a 168% increase over the 2018, the last gubernatorial primary, and a 212% jump above 2020, the last presidential primary year.
And by the way, many of the early voters are black. Black Voters Matter celebrated black voter turnout among early voters. "Voter turnout in Georgia reached historic highs on the first day of early voting in this midterm election, and Black Voters comprised 35% of all those who turned out to vote..." the organization comprised of voting rights activists touted in an Oct. 21 statement. The black male vote totaled more than 46,000, in comparison to less than 39,000 in 2018.
Compared to the last midterm election in 2018, Georgians far exceeded the early voting numbers for the first two days and came very close to the 2020 results, according to data from the Secretary of State.
— Black Voters Matter Fund (@BlackVotersMtr) October 21, 2022
That doesn't sound like the "voter suppression" and "election subversion" Biden has repeatedly warned of.
RATING: Biden's claim that Republicans, who have passed common-sense election reform, are suppressing the right to vote is FALSE. Again and again, Biden characterized the new law as a racist, Jim Crow-era scheme designed to disenfranchise black voters, but it actually expanded voting access in Georgia, as Republican Gov. Brian Kemp predicted at the signing ceremony. Sure enough, in spite of Biden peddling blatant misinformation about the GOP-led movement for restoring election integrity, voters of all races are proving that the democratic process is alive and thriving in Georgia.