Kentucky Senate hopeful Amy McGrath joined a lawsuit alleging potential for “significant voter suppression” on account of certain counties’ lack of in-person polling locations. Filed in the District Court for Kentucky’s Western District, the complaint takes issue with counties having only a singular polling location. McGrath’s campaign also requested that the state’s deadline to request an absentee ballot be extended to June 19, and that counties provide “curbside or drive-thru” service for voters to get absentee ballots until June 22, the day before Kentucky’s primary.
"It is not hyperbole to say that the credibility of the June 23 primary depends on providing all Kentuckians access to the polls, something that can only be achieved by means of the relief sought in this Complaint, expanding access to in-person voting, the availability of absentee voting, and providing the Defendants with the staff and supplies they need to carry out this election," McGrath’s campaign wrote in the legal filing, per Louisville’s Courier Journal.
I’m not just words, I’m action. I talk about the importance of making every voice heard. That's why we’re joining a lawsuit to make sure everyone has their say at the polls in this primary, and created a website and a hotline number to help people get their ballots.
— Amy McGrath (@AmyMcGrathKY) June 11, 2020
The McGrath campaign’s request comes after the Kentucky Democrat praised the efforts of Gov. Andy Beshear (D) to allow all registered voters in Kentucky to mail-in their ballots, on account of COVID-19, telling voters that Beshear has made it “a lot easier” to vote in this election. While adding polling places is generally non-controversial, McGrath’s change in rhetoric is contradictory; the Senate hopeful is famous for flip-flopping her stances on the issues.
McGrath faces a primary challenger, Charles Booker, who claims that Kentucky needs a “real Democrat” to take on incumbent Sen. Mitch McConnell (R-KY) in November. He was recently endorsed by Sen. Bernie Sanders (D-VT) and Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) as the primary approaches.
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