Favorito speaks on election ballots court case in Henry County
BKP Politics, Election 2020 April 14, 2021
The day after the Henry County, Georgia, trial over election ballots, Founder of VoterGa.org Garland Favorito spoke in an interview about the case, current elections, and the process to achieve voter integrity.
A 20-year-veteran of elections and voter integrity since the rise of paperless “DRE” (direct recording electronic) voting machines, Garland Favorito has pushed heavily since the 2020 Presidential Election for voter integrity and elections reforms.
Speaking on the changes in voting machines and the inclusions of Dominion, Favorito spoke on the original issues that citizens and his group raised with Dominion and any other software that records votes through a barcode or QR code. However, over their objections, legislation approve the software.
Now, Favorito speaks out about other key pieces of evidence of election law violations through signed affidavits from Poll Managers handling counterfeit ballots. Specifically in Fulton County and the Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger’s office, Favorito took an Open Records Request to court over seeing ballots casts that was denied by both the county and Raffensperger.
Looking to verify counterfeit ballots, double scans, or other evidence of voter fraud, Favorito is seeking to bring in experts in documentation and forensic examiners to aid him in inspecting Fulton’s elections ballots.
Calling it corruption, Favorito has denounced both Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger and Georgia’s Attorney General Chris Carr for putting in roadblocks to keep his organization from looking at public documents. Georgia’s “Sunshine Law” allows for Open Records Requests submissions to view public documents. Favorito’s basis is viewing these public documents under the allowance for Open Records.
He went on to add that he believes the Secretary of State does not want any investigation that could reveal things that don’t add up, meaning he, as the Secretary, would have a major issue to explain.
During the court case, the judge ruled to turn over the ballot images. Images would be of a lower quality, according to Favorito, who said the quality would not be sufficient to perform the analysis he wants. The simple question he raises is why can he not simply view the original ballots. Yet, Favorito only sees this a step on the path, as he said he wants to return, as ordered, with a more in-depth plan and redoubled efforts to reach the actual, physical ballots.
Favorito calls the case a victory, gaining one of the four things he wanted, the images. But it is not over.
Returning to the case in 34 days, his organization is asking for a visual inspection, a forensic inspection, and the standard election report.
Along a similar note, Favorito commented on Georgia’s SB 202. Favorito called the bill a “mixed bag” of good and bad. While it did allow for public ballot images and elimination of private money, the bill did not provide any protection, according to Favorito, from having to spend thousands of dollars and months in courts to get physical access. He also noted the bill does not provide for forensic examinations of election ballots.
With elections processes the way they are and with Dominion machines still in place, Favorito said he didn’t see how Georgians could feel comfortable with elections under Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger who has attacked election directors in counties reporting machine failures and defends the machines that have failed.
Early voting sees record numbers in absentee ballots in Gilmer
News June 8, 2020
GILMER COUNTY, Ga. – A massive turnout has come for the twin cities and surrounding area as Gilmer’s Voter Registration Office is reporting record numbers in absentee voting.
A total of 1,482 voters stopped by the office during the early voting for the primaries elections staking their votes on local, state, and national offices. Registrar Sherri Jones said that Friday, June 5, 2020, the final day of early voting,was their busiest day of the entire cycle with 161 voters casting their ballots on that day. Yet, that number pales in comparison to another.
Jones said that the state mailed absentee applications to active voters this year in response to the Coronavirus outbreak. Of those applications, a record-breaking 6,117 ballots were requested. Jones said the office has been checking and making signature comparisons and following verification processes. Returning absentee ballots have piled up as they work through the response before tomorrow’s election day.
In fact, they still have not fully processed them all, Jones did confirm, however, that as of 3:00 p.m. on Monday, June 8, 2020, over 4,141 absentee ballots had been received and processed. This does not count the ballots that are still coming in before the deadline and in processing.
As the final hours count down and tomorrow dawns on election day, absentee’s could make up the largest majority of votes counted against individual precincts.
For comparison, the registrar’s office confirmed that the November General Election in 2016, the presidential election, saw the office mailing 725 absentee ballots and receiving 660 ballots in.
In the November General Election of 2018, the office mailed 614 absentee ballots out and received 550 ballots in.
Gilmer has seen large swings in elections in recent years from early voting, but this could be the first time in years, if ever, that the largest swing comes from absentee ballots.