Skip to content
Search

Latest Stories

Top Stories

GOP legislator fired from his day job for pushing Georgia voting curbs bill

Barry Fleming

State Rep. Barry Fleming is now the former Hancock County attorney.

11 Alive screengrab

Sponsoring the sweeping package of voting curbs in the Georgia Legislature has cost a Republican lawmaker his regular job.

Barry Fleming has been unopposed in four straight reelections to a state House seat covering a rural stretch between Atlanta and Augusta. And this month he used his chairmanship of the Committee on Election Integrity to win passage of restrictive election legislation that, among many provisions, would limit early voting on weekends in many counties — which could cripple "Souls to the Polls," the venerable get-out-the-vote drive to get Black voters to cast their ballots after church the Sundays before Election Day.

For nine years Fleming's main source of income has been as county attorney for one of the few solidly Democratic and overwhelmingly Black communities in his district, Hancock County. But on Wednesday the county Board of Commissioners responded to a wave of protests by voting 4-0 to ask for his resignation, which he then submitted.


Fleming's bill would also curb the use of drop boxes for mail ballots, add new proof-of-identity requirements when seeking an absentee ballot, advance the deadline for requesting such a ballot, and prohibit groups from giving water, food and blankets to people in line at polling places. The measure, which passed over united Democratic opposition, must now be reconciled with a different bill passed by the GOP-majority Senate, the main feature of which would be to eliminate no-excuse absentee voting across the state.

Sign up for The Fulcrum newsletter

The twin bills are among the most prominent in a wave of 250 legislative proposals to restrict voting across the country, many of which are advancing in states that (like Georgia) have an all-GOP power structure. Republicans are reacting after a 2020 election that saw record turnout, record use of mail and early voting — and a record amount of baseless skepticism about election integrity fueled by former President Donald Trump's campaign of lies.

Three different counts in Georgia, for example, resulted in virtually identical results and no suspicions of meaningful cheating.

But Fleming said during the debate three weeks ago that his bill would "begin an effort to restore confidence in our election system," He wrote an op-ed likening absentee ballots to the "shady" part of town down by the docks where you could get "shanghaied."

Hancock's population is 71 percent Black, and President Biden carried the county by 44 points as he went on to become the first Democrat since 1992 to take Georgia's electoral votes. Both state's new Democratic senators, Raphael Warnock and Jon Ossoff, also won lopsidedly in the county in January's runoff contests.

"Hancock County is a great place. There's a great board of commissioners there," Fleming told 11Alive News after he resigned. Asked if he objected to the political rationale for his dismissal, he said: "None whatsoever. They're good people. If I can ever do anything in the future to help them I'll be happy to."

The average county attorney's salary in Georgia last year was $76,500. Members of the state House are paid $17,300 on the assumption they will be in session no more than 100 days.

Read More

Just the Facts: Trump Administration Pauses International Student Visas
woman wearing blue denim jacket holding book

Just the Facts: Trump Administration Pauses International Student Visas

The Fulcrum strives to approach news stories with an open mind and skepticism, striving to present our readers with a broad spectrum of viewpoints through diligent research and critical thinking. As best we can, we remove personal bias from our reporting and seek a variety of perspectives in both our news gathering and selection of opinion pieces. However, before our readers can analyze varying viewpoints, they must have the facts.

Has the Trump administration put a hold on issuing student visas for this coming fall?

The Trump administration has paused new student visa interviews as part of an effort to expand social media screening for applicants. The State Department has instructed U.S. embassies and consulates to stop scheduling new student and exchange visitor visa appointments until further guidance is issued. However, previously scheduled interviews will still proceed.

Keep ReadingShow less
Coalition of Nonprofits, Research Institutions Fight Against Proposed Cuts at CDC Injury Center

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Getty Images, sshepard

Coalition of Nonprofits, Research Institutions Fight Against Proposed Cuts at CDC Injury Center

WASHINGTON–Shayna Raphael started promoting infant safety 10 years ago after her daughter Claire passed away due to an unsafe sleeping environment at her daycare.

The Claire Bear Foundation, which Raphael created with her husband, teaches parents about unsafe products. But first, they need the data about which products endanger babies. They rely on a little-known agency at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the Injury Center. The center collects most of the data used to keep people safe from injuries and death.

Keep ReadingShow less