Did you know that under current federal law, in just a few short years Georgia could be forced to translate our ballots and other election materials into foreign languages?

Thus far, Georgians have been shielded from the controversial provision of the federal Voting Rights Act that mandates that some voting jurisdictions provide translated ballots and foreign language poll workers to minority communities that are deemed lacking in English proficiency. But, as Georgia’s immigrant population grows exponentially, we might soon be forced to provide these non-English language ballots!

Congress is currently debating renewal of this provision of the Voting Rights Act, passed as an amendment to the original Act over 30 years ago. As a State Senator, candidate for Secretary of State, and native Georgian, I refuse to sit idly by as the Congress debates how we should conduct our elections. As your next Secretary of State, I will continue to fight to make sure that all of our ballots and other information related to the electoral process are printed in English only. But right now, I need your help to get the message to the federal government that foreign language ballots are totally unacceptable and unwelcome in Georgia.

Please email me at Bill.Stephens@BillStephens.com immediately to let me know how you feel about the prospect of the federal government forcing Georgia to translate our ballots into languages other than English. I will make sure our congressional delegation hears your opinions as they head to Washington, D.C. for hearings on this law.

I am very concerned about the prospect of Georgia being forced by federal law to provide non-English language ballots and other election materials and will do everything I can now, and as your Secretary of State, to make sure this doesn’t happen!

In an ongoing effort to spotlight the importance of election reform and ballot security in Georgia, I have created this series of weekly email alerts called the "Voter Outrage of the Week." Each week, I will highlight a different shocking example of voter fraud or general elections system absurdities and how it relates to our election reform efforts here in Georgia. These messages are also archived at www.BillStephens.com.

Senator Bill Stephens is running for Secretary of State. He is the incumbent Senator from the 27th District, the former Senate Majority Leader, and previously served as Governor Perdue’s Administration Floor Leader and as Chairman of the Senate Republican Caucus. Senator Stephens may be reached via e-mail at mailto:BillStephens@BillStephens.com.

Source: Bill Stephens.com