Kemp signs bill banning dark money in Georgia elections, thwarting Democrats’ infiltration.

Georgia Governor Signs Bill Prohibiting Private Funding for Elections

Georgia Governor Brian Kemp has signed a bill that prohibits local election offices from accepting private funds to conduct elections. The bill, known as SB 222, states that all costs and expenses related to conducting primaries, elections, runoffs, or other undertakings authorized or required by state law shall be paid from lawfully appropriated public funds.

What the Bill Entails

The bill also prohibits county or municipal governments, government employees, or election officials from soliciting, taking, or accepting any contribution, donation, service, or anything else of value for the purpose of conducting primaries or elections or in support of performing their duties under this chapter.

The bill was introduced in February after DeKalb County, a Democrat stronghold, announced it had been selected to join the U.S. Alliance for Election Excellence after the county’s commissioners accepted a $2 million grant from the Center for Tech and Civic Life (CTCL). The Alliance is an $80 million, five-year initiative launched last year by left-wing nonprofits to systematically influence every aspect of election administration and advance Democrat-backed voting policies in local election offices.

Background on Private Funding of Elections

During the 2020 election, nonprofits such as the Center for Tech and Civic Life (CTCL) received hundreds of millions of dollars from Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg. These “Zuckbucks” were poured into local election offices in battleground states around the country to change how elections were administered, such as by expanding unsupervised election protocols like mail-in voting and the use of ballot drop boxes. Notably, the grants were heavily skewed toward Democrat-majority counties, essentially making it a massive, privately funded Democrat get-out-the-vote operation.

Georgia received $45 million from CTCL during the 2020 cycle, with more than 94 percent ($42.4 million) of such funds going towards 17 of the 31 counties won by Joe Biden. DeKalb County received the second largest grant per capita, beaten only by nearby Clayton County.

Reaction to the Bill

Ken Blackwell, the chair of the America First Policy Institute’s Center for Election Integrity, applauded Kemp for signing SB 222, saying the law makes “it easy to vote but hard to cheat.”

“Allowing private money to fund elections administration opens the door for partisan influence in elections, which is unfair to voters, who all deserve to be treated equally,” Blackwell said.

Georgia’s state election board has since launched an investigation into DeKalb County, presumably over its Alliance membership and acceptance of CTCL grant money.

Shawn Fleetwood is a Staff Writer for The Federalist and a graduate of the University of Mary Washington. He also serves as a state content writer for Convention of States Action and his work has been featured in numerous outlets, including RealClearPolitics, RealClearHealth, and Conservative Review. Follow him on Twitter @ShawnFleetwood