Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger is joining a mounting chorus of voices calling for an end to General Election Runoffs in the state.
In most states, the winner of an election is the candidate with the most votes, even if that means the candidate did not get more than 50% of the vote. Georgia requires candidates to receive a majority of the votes instead of a plurality.
The runoff law did not make a difference in Georgia’s senate race outcome. Democrat Raphael Warnock won in the general election in November, and also won in the December runoff. Yet, the state had to pay for another election and voters were asked to vote a second time for their Senate pick.
“Georgia is one of the only states in country with a General Election Runoff,” Raffensperger said. “We’re also one of the only states that always seems to have a runoff. I’m calling on the General Assembly to visit the topic of the General Election Runoff and consider reforms.”
The General Assembly convenes in January and could select from a wide range of options to address this topic to help further the goal of safe, secure, and efficient elections.
“No one wants to be dealing with politics in the middle of their family holiday,” said Raffensperger. “It’s even tougher on the counties who had a difficult time completing all of their deadlines, an election audit and executing a runoff in a four-week time period.”
Georgia’s 2022 midterms shattered previous turnout records and achieved a high level of access for Georgia voters. Some counties had as many as 19 days of Early Voting in the General Election.
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