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U.S. NEWS Wednesday 10 June 2020
Heat, rain, long lines: Georgia election plagued by problems

Continued from Front said they had been waiting
for nearly four hours in a line
There was also trouble with that wrapped around the
Georgia’s new voting sy- block. At another site off
stem that combines touch- Atlanta’s Piedmont Park,
screens with scanned pa- several people walked up,
per ballots. looked at the line wrap-
The developments were ped around the parking lot
troubling heading into the and then left, shaking their
fall presidential campaign, heads in frustration.
which will attract even Atlanta Mayor Keisha Lan-
more voters. President Do- ce Bottoms said voters in
nald Trump and Democrat line at one of Atlanta’s lar-
Joe Biden are expected to gest precincts reported all
fiercely compete in this ra- the machines were down.
pidly changing state. That She encouraged voters not
leaves officials, who have to give up.
already been criticized “If you are in line, PLEASE
for attempting to suppress do not allow your vote to
the vote, with less than be suppressed,” the mayor
five months to turn things tweeted.
around. The problems weren’t just
One state lawmaker, De- limited to the Atlanta area.
mocratic Rep. William People vote at voting booths in the Georgia's primary election at Park Tavern on Tuesday, June 9, In Savannah, Mayor Van
Boddie of Atlanta, said 2020, in Atlanta. Johnson said he was “in-
there was a “complete Associated Press undated” with phone calls
meltdown.” The state’s Tuesday morning from vo-
chief elections officer, Re- 25-year-old African Ameri- “We only have a few shington, D.C. While there ters reporting “extensive
publican Secretary of State can. He said he was appal- months left until voters were no reports of machine delays.” Election officials
Brad Raffensperger, an- led by how few voting ma- around the nation head to malfunctions in other states in surrounding Chatham
nounced plans to investi- chines were available. the polls again, and efforts on Tuesday, the number of County said voting hours at
gate voting problems that Americans were also vo- should begin immediately voting places was drama- 35 precincts were being ex-
plagued Fulton and Dekalb ting in primaries in West Vir- to ensure that every Ge- tically reduced in virtually tended by two hours, until
counties, where roughly ginia, Nevada and South orgian -- and every Ameri- every state that has held 9 p.m.
half the population is black. Carolina. But the tumult in can -- is able to safely exer- in-person voting in recent Democratic National Com-
Benaiah Shaw, who joined Georgia garnered much cise their right to vote. Our weeks to accommodate a mittee Chairman Tom Pe-
the protests against po- of the attention, reinforcing campaign will remain fully drop in poll workers. rez said he wasn’t surprised
lice brutality after Floyd’s concerns about managing engaged in defending that Even before Georgia vo- that Georgia had voting
death, said he votes in eve- elections amid the corona- right,” said Rachana Desai ters ran into problems, Raf- problems given that the
ry election but had never virus. Martin, the campaign’s na- fensperger warned that re- state’s elections chief is a
waited as long as he did on The Biden campaign cal- tional director for voter pro- sults may be slow to come Republican. He noted that
Tuesday — five hours. led the voting problems in tection and senior counsel. in because of poll closures GOP Gov. Brian Kemp fa-
“It’s really disheartening to Georgia “completely un- Voters were also forced to and virus restrictions. ced allegations of suppres-
see a line like this in an area acceptable,” as well as a wait hours to cast ballots Outside a recreation cen- sing votes when he over-
with predominantly black threat to American values in recent primary contests ter being used as a polling saw the 2018 elections as
residents,” said Shaw, a of free and fair elections. across Wisconsin and Wa- site in Atlanta, some voters secretary of state.q

Insurance telemarketers fined $225M for a billion robocalls

people with 1 billion ro- calls offered plans from er ID with intent to deceive
bocalls using fake phone major insurers like Aetna consumers; purposefully
numbers. The Federal and UnitedHealth with an called people who are on
Communications Com- automated message. If the Do Not Call list; and
mission said John Spiller consumers pressed a but- called people's mobile
and Jakob Mears made ton for more information, phones without getting
the calls through two busi- however, they were trans- permission first.
nesses. State attorneys ferred to a call center that Consumers weren't the
general of Arkansas, Indi- sold plans not connected only ones bothered. The
ana, Michigan, Missouri, to those companies. The telemarketers faked their
North Carolina, Ohio and FCC said the Missouri at- calls to make them ap-
Texas also sued the two torney general sued Ris- pear they came from
men and their companies, ing Eagle's largest client, other companies, which
In this Aug. 11, 2019, file photo, a man uses a cell phone in Rising Eagle and JSquared Health Advisors of Ameri- then received angry calls
New Orleans. Telecom, in federal court ca, for telemarketing vio- and were named in law-
Associated Press in Texas, where both men lations last year. suits from consumers. The
live, for violating the fed- Over more than four FCC didn't name these
By TALI ARBEL posed a $225 million fine, eral law governing tele- months in early 2019, the companies, but said one
AP Technology Writer its largest ever, against marketing, the Telephone FCC said, these telemar- got so many calls that its
The U.S. communications two health insurance tele- Consumer Protection Act. keters faked the number phone network "became
regulator on Tuesday pro- marketers for spamming The FCC said the robo- their calls displayed in call- unusable." q