Georgia’s Secretary of State Prepares for Another Election
The Political Scene | The New Yorker
The New Yorker
4.3 • 3.9K Ratings
🗓️ 30 April 2024
⏱️ 16 minutes
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Summary
Brad Raffensperger, who holds the usually low-profile office of secretary of state in Georgia, became famous after he recorded a phone call with Donald Trump. Shortly after the 2020 election, Trump demanded that Georgia officials “find 11,780 votes” so that he could win the state. The recorded phone conversation is a linchpin in the Fulton County racketeering case against Trump. Refusing that demand, Raffensperger—a lifelong Republican—received death threats from enraged Trumpists, and the state senate still wants to investigate him for it. But the politician tells David Remnick that he hasn’t lost faith in his party. He believes he can convince election deniers of the fairness of Georgia’s methods. And, by the way, that story line on “Curb Your Enthusiasm” about the Georgia crime of giving a person water while they wait in line to vote? Raffensperger has a suggestion for Larry David.
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| 0:44.1 | Things people love. |
| 0:49.4 | This is the political scene, and I'm David Remnick. |
| 0:56.0 | If you can name the Secretary of State for whatever state you live in, go ahead and give yourself a gold star in civics. |
| 1:03.3 | But to be honest, I can't name mine. |
| 1:05.2 | I can't name any of the other 49 secretaries of state either. |
| 1:09.5 | Well, there's one big exception. |
| 1:11.6 | Brad Raffensberger, the Secretary of State for Georgia. |
| 1:14.6 | He became a national figure during a phone call that you probably heard about. |
| 1:20.6 | So, look, all I want to do is this. |
| 1:23.6 | I just want to find 11,780 votes, which is one more that we have because we won the state. |
| 1:35.9 | That was Donald Trump after the 2020 election, and he was in a lousy mood. |
| 1:40.7 | You guys are so wrong, and you've treated this, you've treated the population of Georgia |
| 1:46.1 | so badly. |
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