Facing Backlash, U of GA Reverses Course, Announces Basketball Arena As New Voting Site

[RandySF]

Facing an uproar from students, professors and alum, the University of Georgia on Thursday reversed course and announced it would allow in-person early voting on campus for the upcoming election.

The university had said Wednesday that it had been determined that “there would be no on-campus voting” at the Tate student center “due to concerns about long voting lines and insufficient indoor space required to maintain social distancing necessitated by the COVID-19 pandemic.”

The statement went on to say the university would provide a shuttle service for students to vote on at other locations in Athens — a point that drew widespread criticism for the hypocrisy of not being able to easily socially distance on a shuttle bus.

Amid the backlash, the university Thursday announced it had changed its earlier decision and had notified the secretary of state's office about using Stegeman Coliseum, the on-campus basketball arena with a seating capacity of 10,500, as a voting venue.




https://www.gpb.org/news/2020/09/17/facing-backlash-uga-reverses-course-announces-basketball-arena-new-voting-site

[LisaL]

1. Great.

The idea that shuttling students on buses to other voting locations was somehow safer obviously doesn't hold water.

[msongs]

2. eliminates the need to use the USPS for loads of voters. that's great nt

[crickets]

3. Thank goodness somebody came to their senses.

What, they could map out limited fan seating at Sanford Stadium in detail but couldn't figure out how to accommodate on campus voting? Crazy. The idiotic hypocrisy of having a football season with fan attendance but not being willing to set up a student polling place was just surreal.