Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger has called on the General Assembly to take immediate action and ban foreign funding in campaigns and elections and to require lobbyists and political consultants to register with the state for their work with foreign entities.
“With open borders, the number one issue facing our nation is foreign interference in our campaigns and elections,” said Raffensperger.
Legislation should ban foreign sources of funding from influencing elections, which includes campaigns for public office or any ballot measures being put before voters in Georgia. It would require state registration of American lobbyists or political consultants on behalf of foreign governments, agencies, political parties, or organizations.
“Foreign actors shouldn’t be allowed to use dark money or American citizens as willing cut-outs to avoid disclosure of their goals and intentions in influencing the American political system,” said Raffensperger. “We need transparency from state lobbyists and political consultants who are also being paid by a foreign entity.”
Based on recent surveys, the level of distrust in the political process has increased, even with a majority of Georgia voters believing that their elections are fair and honest.
“Most people trust the mechanics of the voting and counting processes because we’ve been transparent about them and worked very hard to build public trust in those processes,” said Raffensperger. “We need to extend that same trust to the process of campaign finance and make sure that if there is any foreign interference in elections, voters are aware of it.”
