Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp slams MLB for 'politicizing' the sport by moving All-Star game from Atlanta to Denver in protest over new voting laws and says it'll hurt the black-owned businesses near the stadium
Georgia's Republican governor on Saturday stepped up his attack on Major League Baseball's decision to pull this summer's All-Star Game from the state in response to a sweeping new voting law, saying the move politicized the sport and would hurt minority-owned businesses.
The game has been moved from Atlanta to Denver in protest over Georgia's new voting laws which critics say will suppress black and minority voters.
The new law makes it more difficult to cast absentee ballots and it enforces stricter ID checks.
It is a response to the hotly contested presidential race in Georgia last year and widespread claims of voter fraud.
Kemp said that moving the game does nothing to change politics but will hurt the businesses near the Atlanta stadium where the event was due to be held, many of which he says are minority-owned.
Georgia Gov Brian Kemp on Saturday at a press conference held at a po'boy restaurant near the Atlanta baseball stadium where the All Star game was due to be played but has since been moved from
'It´s minority-owned businesses that have been hit harder than most because of an invisible virus by no fault of their own,' Gov. Brian Kemp said.
'And these are the same minority businesses that are now being impacted by another decision that is by no fault of their own.'
Kemp spoke along with Georgia Attorney General Chris Carr, also a Republican, at a seafood and po'boy restaurant miles from the stadium in a suburb north of Atlanta where the game would have been held, though he said he didn't think the restaurant was minority-owned.
He has previously criticized MLB's decision. The game will now be played in Denver. Kemp noted at Saturday's news conference that Denver has a much smaller percentage of African Americans than Atlanta. And he said MLB's move has injected politics into the 'great American pastime.'
'People shouldn't have to go to the game and worry about if they'e sitting next to a Joe Biden supporter or a Donald Trump supporter,' he said.
'They ought to be able to go to the game, cheer for their team just like if you're in church worshipping.'
The game was due to be played at Truist Park in Atlanta but the MLB has moved it to Denver
The Atlanta Braves, the All-Star Game's host team, criticized MLB's decision in a statement, saying the club is 'deeply disappointed'
Critics say it's the voting law that's political and will disproportionately affect communities of color. Kemp's news conference was trying to deflect from that, as the governor gears up for next year's election to try to win a second term, said Aklima Khondoker, state director of the voting rights group, All Voting is Local.
'He´s pivoting away from all of the malicious things that we understand that this bill represents to people of color in Georgia,' she said.
About two dozen protesters turned out near Augusta National on Saturday, holding signs that said 'Let Us Vote' and 'Protect Georgia Voting Rights.'
MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred has said he made the decision to move the All-Star events after discussions with individual players and the Players Alliance, an organization of Black players formed after the death of George Floyd last year, and that the league opposed restrictions to the ballot box.
A MLB spokesman said the league had no immediate additional comment Saturday.
Ann White of Roswell holds protest signs on the North Wing stairs of the Georgia State Capitol building on day 38 of the legislative session in Atlanta
Several groups already have filed suit over the voting measure, which includes strict identification requirements for voting absentee by mail.
It expands weekend early voting, but limits the use of ballot drop boxes, makes it a crime to hand out food or water to voters waiting in line and gives the State Election Board new powers to intervene in county election offices and to remove and replace local election officials. That has led to concerns that the Republican-controlled state board could exert more influence over the administration of elections, including the certification of county results.
The rewrite of Georgia´s election rules - signed by Kemp last month - follows former President Donald Trump´s repeated, baseless claims of fraud after his presidential loss to Biden. Democrats have assailed the law as an attempt to suppress Black and Latino votes, with Biden calling it 'Jim Crow in the 21st Century.'
Carr and Kemp blasted that comparison.
'This made up narrative that this bill takes us back to Jim Crow - an era when human beings were being killed and who were truly prevented from casting their vote - is preposterous,' Carr said. 'It is irresponsible, and it's fundamentally wrong.'
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