MILLEDGEVILLE, Ga. (AP) 鈥� The Democrat running to be Georgia's top elections official says a closer look at incumbent Republican Brad Raffensperger's record will reveal he's no hero for refusing to do the bidding of former President Donald Trump.
鈥淭here seems to be this idea that he is a moderate Republican, and that is not true at all," Bee Nguyen, a state House member, said after a speech last week in the central Georgia town of Milledgeville.
While other that Democrats stole the 2020 presidential election, Raffensperger stands by his refusal to bend to to give him a win in Georgia. A recording of the phone call he took from Trump is now .
鈥淚 report the results, and sometimes people don鈥檛 like that,鈥� Raffensperger said at an . 鈥淎nd I鈥檝e had to stand up to the incredible pressure. And I鈥檒l continue to stand up to pressure, because when I do that, I鈥檓 standing up for you the voter; I鈥檓 standing up for the Constitution and I鈥檓 standing up for the rule of law. Many people buckled and folded. I didn鈥檛, and I won鈥檛.鈥�
Those actions have given Raffensperger an appeal that's making it harder for Nguyen. She's one of a running in Georgia, and has raised an unusually large $3.2 million to run for a sometimes-obscure office. That's more than the $3 million Raffensperger has raised, including $850,000 in loans to himself.
But Nguyen faults Raffensperger for endorsing , which has narrowed the opportunity to cast mail ballots, banned giving food or water to waiting voters, curtailed ballot drop boxes and reduced opportunities for voters to cast a provisional ballot if they show up at the wrong place on Election Day.
Nguyen also reminds voters that as a state lawmaker, Raffensperger held a no-exceptions opposition to abortion.
鈥淕eorgia voters need to understand his record, which is out of touch with the majority of Georgians, from the personhood bill that he introduced, which would have eliminated even basic forms of birth control, to his stances on voting," Nguyen said. 鈥淲e deserve better than somebody who believes that the office's duty is just to count the vote.鈥�
Nguyen needs to sway independents and even some Democrats who may vote for Raffensperger. After being left for dead as Trump heaped scorn on him, Raffensperger proved himself quite politically alive in May's Republican primary. He who objected to Georgia鈥檚 electoral votes being counted for President Joe Biden. Thousands who previously voted in Democratic primaries , possibly providing the votes necessary for Raffensperger to avoid a runoff.
No one would mistake Raffensperger, an engineer who grew wealthy after founding a concrete engineering company, for a dynamic speaker. His campaign consists mostly of interviews and talks to civic clubs. He has positioned himself above the fray, about the 2020 elections.
Even with Raffensperger's primary victory, claims of election fraud haven't been banished from Georgia's secretary of state race 鈥� Libertarian Ted Metz is aiming for votes by claiming there are 鈥渟till unresolved issues in the 2020 election鈥� and says the outcome is 鈥漬ot credible."
With women's access to reproductive health care now in play as a major driver of voting nationwide, Nguyen says Raffensperger's opposition to abortion could become an issue if nurses get in legal trouble for aiding abortions that are now mostly banned in Georgia. That's because the secretary of state's office helps administer licensing for the Georgia Board of Nursing.
鈥淲e will keep fighting to protect our basic freedoms, including the freedom to vote and the freedom to choose,鈥� Nguyen told the crowd in Milledgeville.
Raffensperger countered that his office only provides administrative support and said Nguyen 鈥渇undamentally鈥� doesn't understand the office's role.
鈥淲e don鈥檛 select the boards, the boards run their shop,鈥� Raffensperger said. "They are responsible for licensing, discipline and rules. Job 1 is to know the job, and you don鈥檛 know the job.鈥�
But Nguyen notes Raffensperger in 2020 in a dispute unrelated to abortion.
She also says Raffensperger hasn't supported county election officials, noting that he recently had to retract incorrect guidance saying voters could be challenged at polling places. And she says he was inexcusably slow in calling in the Georgia Bureau of Investigation to pursue a criminal inquiry into how Trump-aligned election deniers .
鈥淚t鈥檚 been 21 months, no one has been held criminally accountable ... It took a year and a half to bring GBI in to investigate those claims," Nguyen said in the debate. 鈥淭his is about public trust, and the secretary of state鈥檚 office mishandled that investigation.鈥�
Raffensperger defended his performance, saying 鈥淧eople broke the law, they should be investigated, held accountable, and go to jail.鈥�
He seeks to tie Nguyen to how Stacey Abrams, now in a rematch against Gov. Brian Kemp, . She acknowledged Kemp would be governor, but refused to use the word "concede," arguing Kemp had abused his two terms as secretary of state to hurt the Democrats' chances of winning elections. Raffensperger and others argue that Abrams' claims were damaging in the same way Trump's acts were after 2020.
鈥淒on鈥檛 you think that election denial is a threat to our democracy?" Raffensperger asked Nguyen.
Nguyen, though, keeps trying to persuade voters that Raffensperger is the threat to freedom, saying in an Oct. 19 appearance that high early turnout doesn't prove voting is secure.
鈥淲e in Georgia know that we have always had to out-organize voter suppression," Nguyen said. 鈥淯nder Brad Raffensperger鈥檚 tenure, voting rights have become more restrictive in the last four years, not more expansive.鈥�
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Jeff Amy, The Associated Press
