Georgia Lt. Gov. Burt Jones: Secretary of State Raffensperger’s Years-Long Inaction on Fulton County Elections

Georgia Lieutenant Governor Burt Jones said on Monday that Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger has failed to enforce election integrity in Fulton County for years.

Jones accused Raffensperger of political posturing and inaction as the two compete for the GOP gubernatorial nomination. Speaking on a recent show, Jones stated that problems with Fulton County elections have long predated 2020 and remain unresolved under Raffensperger’s leadership.

“In Georgia, we’ve known for a long time that Fulton County has had issues way before 2020 and in municipal elections or state elections, it doesn’t matter,” Jones said. “There’s always been issues with Fulton County and their voter roll and their unwillingness to clean their voter roll. And the secretary of state has been complicit in allowing this to go on.”

Jones also highlighted federal scrutiny involving Fulton County records ahead of an FBI raid on the elections hub last week. “The DOJ requested, had a court order requesting they gain access to those files before the FBI raid,” he said. “And not only did Fulton County ignore it, but our secretary of state ignored it as well. So it’s obvious he’s playing politics.”

When asked about Raffensperger’s recent pivot on Real ID and voter identification requirements, Jones characterized the shift as a distraction from the secretary’s failure to enforce election integrity. “He’s just trying to distract from what he’s not doing as far as holding Fulton County accountable,” Jones said. “We do require that people have a photo ID or their driver’s license. If they don’t have a driver’s license for whatever reason, they can ask for a voter ID card from their local county officials.”

Jones added that such measures were enacted by the legislature because Raffensperger has been described as “one of the worst ones I’ve seen since being in office.”

Raffensperger defended his record by stating he had made Georgia “the best, most secure state for elections” through tools including citizenship verification systems. Jones cited independent journalist David Khait’s recent revelations about irregularities in Georgia’s voter registration rolls, noting that individuals were registered at locations such as UPS stores, P.O. boxes, homeless shelters, and churches.

“These things have been pointed out on numerous occasions to the secretary of state’s office, and seemingly nothing is done about it,” Jones said. “So I think he’s just playing lip service right now. Obviously he’s running for higher office so he’s trying to make himself out to be the best thing since sliced bread as far as the secretary of state is concerned.”

Jones and Raffensperger are among five Republicans competing for the party’s nomination to succeed term-limited Governor Brian Kemp in Georgia’s May 19 primary.