Cobb County is expected to lose millions of dollars in tourism revenue following a decision from Major League Baseball officials to move the All-Star Game and draft weekend from Atlanta, where the Braves play, in protest of a new voting law in Georgia.
Officials in the county forecast a loss of over $100 million, including 8,000 filled hotel rooms that will no longer be needed, which is anticipated to be a significant blow to the hospitality industry that is still reeling from the coronavirus pandemic, according to WSB-TV.
“This event would have directly impacted our county and the state, as visitors spend their dollars on local accommodations, transportation, entertainment and recreation, food and retail throughout the county,” Cobb County Travel and Tourism said. “This would have been a big boost to Cobb businesses and help with recovery after the COVID-19 pandemic.”
The MLB announced its decision on Friday, citing “restrictions to the ballot box” resulting from Georgia’s voting bill that was signed by Republican Gov. Brian Kemp this month.
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The legislation, passed in the battleground state by the GOP-controlled legislature after President Joe Biden‘s victory there, will impose voter identification requirements for absentee ballots, give state officials the authority to take over local elections boards, limit the use of ballot drop boxes, and make it a crime for politically affiliated persons to approach voters in line to give them food and water.
Democrats who oppose the measure argue the provisions are aimed at disenfranchising voters. The American Civil Liberties Union, alongside other groups, sued Georgia on Tuesday, alleging the legislation “placed burdensome, unjustified, and unnecessary restrictions on voters, particularly voters of color and other historically disenfranchised communities.” There have also been a wave of corporations voicing opposition to the law.
Conservative figures have insisted the newly enacted provisions curb voter fraud and contribute to election integrity.
Biden, who has called Georgia’s voting reform law “Jim Crow on steroids,” endorsed the MLB’s decision to protest the law.
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“I think today’s professional athletes are acting incredibly responsibly,” the president said this week in an interview with ESPN. “I would strongly support them doing that. People look to them. They’re leaders.”
Meanwhile, former President Donald Trump called for a baseball boycott.
The Cobb County Travel and Tourism office did not immediately respond to a request for comment from the Washington Examiner.
