David Perdue is proposing a “law enforcement unit” in Georgia to enforce election laws and investigate fraud as he seeks to outflank Gov. Brian Kemp on the crucial issue of ballot integrity and unseat him in the state’s Republican gubernatorial primary.
Perdue, endorsed by Donald Trump, supports the former president’s unsubstantiated claims that the 2020 election was stolen. And like Trump, Perdue, who also lost reelection in 2020, is blaming Kemp for President Joe Biden’s victory in Georgia, the first by a Democratic nominee since 1992. But in proposing a new unit with police powers to enforce election laws and investigate ballot-related crimes, Perdue is actually following the lead of another Republican: Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis.
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“What happened in 2020 should never happen again,” Perdue said Thursday, the one-year anniversary of Biden’s inauguration, in a statement.
“That’s why I’m proposing an Election Law Enforcement Division that would investigate election crimes within the State of Georgia,” the former senator added. “The purpose of this law enforcement unit is to give Georgians confidence that only legal votes will be counted, and that anyone who tries to interfere with our elections will be arrested and prosecuted.”
The Kemp campaign responded to Perdue’s proposal with a mocking tweet.
“David Perdue finally admits his entire campaign is based on a lie,” Kemp campaign spokesman Cody Hall said in a Twitter post. “His proposal recognizes that governors have no legal authority in the oversight, administration, or investigation of elections under current state law and constitution.”
In which David Perdue finally admits his entire campaign is based on a lie.
His proposal recognizes that governors have no legal authority in the oversight, administration, or investigation of elections under current state law and constitution. #gapol https://t.co/FkI2lsdKqU
— Cody Hall (@CodyHallGA) January 20, 2022
Perdue is additionally proposing that all elections in Georgia be independently audited before being certified, although he does not specify who would be entrusted with the task.
In Florida, DeSantis is proposing to establish the Office of Election Crimes and Security despite the lack of material election fraud in the state — in 2020 or in any other recent prior contest. The unit would be under the control of the executive branch of Florida’s government and be empowered to investigate alleged election irregularities make arrests in the event criminal activity is discovered.
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Perdue’s campaign to oust Kemp in Georgia’s late May GOP primary is an especially bitter affair. The former senator and the governor were longtime allies, and their nomination fight is dividing Republicans in the state across the party.
