Alan Tinsley Powell (born November 10, 1951) is an American politician who has served in the

Georgia House of Representatives The Georgia House of Representatives is the lower house of the Georgia General Assembly (the state legislature) of the U.S. state of Georgia. There are currently 180 elected members. Republicans have had a majority in the chamber since 2005. T ...

since 1991. He was originally elected as a

Democrat Democrat, Democrats, or Democratic may refer to: Politics *A proponent of democracy, or democratic government; a form of government involving rule by the people. *A member of a Democratic Party: **Democratic Party (United States) (D) **Democratic ...

, but switched to a

Republican Republican can refer to: Political ideology * An advocate of a republic, a type of government that is not a monarchy or dictatorship, and is usually associated with the rule of law. ** Republicanism, the ideology in support of republics or agains ...

in 2010, citing his

conservative Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy that seeks to promote and to preserve traditional institutions, practices, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civilization i ...

views.

Tenure

He supported the

Election Integrity Act of 2021 The Election Integrity Act of 2021, originally known as the Georgia Senate Bill 202, is a law in the U.S. state of Georgia overhauling elections in the state. It mandates voter identification requirements on absentee ballots, limits the use o ...

, a Republican-supported law to restrict voting rights in Georgia. Among its many provisions, it would restrict where ballot drop boxes can be located and when they can be accessed, require photo identification for

absentee voting An absentee ballot is a vote cast by someone who is unable or unwilling to attend the official polling station to which the voter is normally allocated. Methods include voting at a different location, postal voting, proxy voting and online vot ...

, shift back the deadline to request an absentee ballot, limit

early voting Early voting, also called advance polling or pre-poll voting, is a convenience voting process by which voters in a public election can vote before a scheduled election day. Early voting can take place remotely, such as via postal voting, or in ...

hours, and prevent anyone other than poll workers from giving food and water to voters standing in lines. Most controversially, it would restrict early voting on Sundays, when

Black church The black church (sometimes termed Black Christianity or African American Christianity) is the faith and body of Christian congregations and denominations in the United States that minister predominantly to African Americans, as well as their ...

es traditionally run "Souls to the Polls"

get-out-the-vote "Get out the vote" or "getting out the vote" (GOTV) describes efforts aimed at increasing the voter turnout in elections. In countries that do not have or enforce compulsory voting, voter turnout can be low, sometimes even below a third of the ...

efforts. Powell defended the bill, saying "Show me the suppression. There is no suppression in this bill." The legislation was passed by the Republican-controlled legislature in Georgia shortly after the 2020 elections when Democrats won the two U.S. Senate seats in Georgia and Joe Biden became the first Democratic presidential candidate to win Georgia since

1992 File:1992 Events Collage V1.png, From left, clockwise: 1992 Los Angeles riots, Riots break out across Los Angeles, California after the Police brutality, police beating of Rodney King; El Al Flight 1862 crashes into a residential apartment buildi ...

. Then-President

Donald Trump Donald John Trump (born June 14, 1946) is an American politician, media personality, and businessman who served as the 45th president of the United States from 2017 to 2021. Trump graduated from the Wharton School of the University of Pe ...

and his allies made false claims of fraud in multiple states, including Georgia, after they lost the elections.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Powell, Alan 1951 births Living people Members of the Georgia House of Representatives Georgia (U.S. state) Democrats Georgia (U.S. state) Republicans People from Hartwell, Georgia 21st-century American politicians