ATLANTA — Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger vowed to defy a State Senate resolution and refuse to turn over sensitive voter information to the Department of Justice.
Raffensperger stated that providing the data, which includes full Social Security numbers, would violate Georgia law.
The resolution, passed by Senate Republicans, urges the Secretary of State’s office to provide the information as part of a request from President Trump’s administration.
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While the measure passed the Senate, it carries no legal weight and serves only as a suggestion to the Secretary of State.
Raffensperger told Channel 2’s Richard Elliot that state law is explicit regarding the privacy of voter records, specifically protecting personal identifiers.
“That this office will not violate state law and state law is very clear, that we are not allowed to turn over the voters’ complete Social Security number, day, month, year of your birth,” Raffensperger said.
State Sen. Randy Robertson (R-Columbus) argued that the law supports the sharing of such information with other government entities. He noted that the federal government already possesses much of the data requested by the DOJ.
“I think reading over Georgia law, it does encourage that this information is shared with other states, other territories within the United States, and federal agencies,” Robertson said.
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State Sen. Kim Jackson (D-Atlanta) disputed that interpretation and raised concerns about data security.
“Georgia law prevents this type of data from being passed on or handed over to the DOJ or any agency, quite frankly, that cannot guarantee the safety of that data,” Jackson said.
Raffensperger criticized the Senate for passing a resolution that he believes encourages his office to disregard existing statutes.
“For them to introduce and want to pass a resolution for us to violate the law,” he said. “These are supposed to be lawmakers, not lawbreakers,” Raffensperger said.
A lawsuit filed by the Department of Justice last month demanding Georgia turn over the voter data remains pending. The federal government has insisted it has a right to the information to ensure states maintain proper voter registration and voting lists.
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