Challenges Faced by Brian Kemp: Obstacles and Turning Points

2006: Failed Run for Agriculture Commissioner

In 2006, Brian Kemp ran for Agriculture Commissioner of Georgia, finishing second in the primary but losing the runoff to Gary Black.

2006: Lost Republican Primary for Agriculture Commissioner

In 2006, Brian Kemp ran for commissioner of the Georgia Department of Agriculture but was defeated in the Republican primary.

2010: Introduction of "Exact Match" Policy

In 2010, during his first year as secretary of state, Brian Kemp introduced the controversial "exact match" policy for voter registration.

2012: Voter Registration Cancellations

Between 2012 and 2018, Brian Kemp's office canceled over 1.4 million voters' registrations in Georgia, with nearly 700,000 cancellations in 2017 alone, more aggressively than any other state.

2012: Changes to the Voting Rights Act and Polling Location Closures

In 2012, changes to the Voting Rights Act gave states with a history of voter suppression more autonomy. As a result, Brian Kemp's office oversaw the closing of 214 polling locations in Georgia, disproportionately affecting African-American communities.

July 2015: Start of Voter Roll Drops

From July 2015, critics noted that registration drops disproportionately affected minorities, with African-American, Asian, and Latino voters accounting for 76.3% of registrations dropped.

October 2015: Data Breach of Voter Information

In October 2015, the Georgia Secretary of State's office, under Brian Kemp's leadership, illegally disclosed the personal information of 6.2 million registered Georgia voters.

2015: Criticism after Data Breach

In 2015, Brian Kemp faced criticism following a data breach that exposed the personal information of over six million voters to 12 organizations.

2016: Voter Purge Investigation by Greg Palast

An investigative journalism group run by Greg Palast found that, of the approximately 534,000 Georgians whose voter registrations were purged between 2016 and 2017, more than 334,000 still lived where they were registered. The voters were given no notice that they had been purged.

2016: Rejection of Federal Help for Election Security

During the 2016 election, Brian Kemp rejected assistance from the Department of Homeland Security to safeguard against Russian interference, standing as the sole state official to do so.

2016: Lawsuit Halts "Exact Match" Policy

In 2016, a lawsuit led to the halting of the "exact match" policy that was introduced earlier by Brian Kemp.

July 2017: End of Voter Roll Drops

By July 2017, critics noted that registration drops disproportionately affected minorities, with African-American, Asian, and Latino voters accounting for 76.3% of registrations dropped.

July 2017: Mass Voter Registration Cancellations

In July 2017, under Brian Kemp's oversight as secretary of state, half a million voters in Georgia, about 8% of all registered voters, had their registrations canceled in a single night. This action was described by The Atlanta Journal-Constitution as potentially "the largest mass disenfranchisement in US history."

2017: Voter Purge Investigation by Greg Palast

An investigative journalism group run by Greg Palast found that, of the approximately 534,000 Georgians whose voter registrations were purged between 2016 and 2017, more than 334,000 still lived where they were registered. The voters were given no notice that they had been purged.

2017: Purge of Inactive Voters

In 2017, as part of his tenure as Secretary of State, Brian Kemp purged 668,000 inactive voters from voter rolls, contributing to later accusations of voter suppression.

2017: Security Flaw Exposing Voter Information

In 2017, it was revealed that a flaw in the state voting system exposed the personal information of over six million Georgia voters, leading to further criticism for Brian Kemp.

2017: Modified "Exact Match" Policy Reinstated

In 2017, the state legislature passed a modified form of the "exact match" policy, and the process began again after the initial policy was halted in 2016.

May 2018: Sued for failure to repay business loans

In May 2018, Brian Kemp was sued for failure to repay $500,000 in business loans related to his guarantee of loans to Hart AgStrong. A settlement was reached shortly before he became governor.

September 5, 2018: Attack Ad Regarding Massage Envy

On September 5, 2018, an attack ad claimed that Brian Kemp did not pursue accusations of sexual assault against therapists employed by Massage Envy due to campaign donations from franchisee owners.

October 2018: Report on loans to community bank

In October 2018, WAGA-TV reported that companies Brian Kemp owned owed more than $800,000 in loans to a community bank where he was a founding board member and stockholder.

October 2018: Voter Registration Applications Put on Hold

In early October 2018, Brian Kemp's office had put more than 53,000 voter registration applications on hold, with over 75% belonging to minorities. The voters are eligible to re-register if they still live in Georgia and have not died.

November 4, 2018: Allegations of Attempted Hacking

On November 4, 2018, 48 hours before the gubernatorial election, Brian Kemp's office published details of a zero-day flaw in the state registration website. Kemp accused Democrats of attempted hacking for investigating the problem but provided no evidence, leading to criticism and accusations of voter suppression.

December 4, 2018: Congressional Inquiry Announced

On December 4, 2018, U.S. Representative Elijah Cummings, announced that he wanted to call Brian Kemp before Congress to testify about the fairness of his actions during the 2018 elections.

December 2018: Unsubstantiated Hacking Allegations

In December 2018, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution found that Brian Kemp made hacking allegations without any evidence and might have used the unsubstantiated accusations against Democrats as a ploy to help him win the election.

2018: Controversies Surrounding the 2018 Georgia Midterms

As a result of the controversies surrounding the 2018 Georgia midterms, critics have called Kemp's gubernatorial victory illegitimate. However, political scientists and news outlets have largely rejected these claims.

2018: Voter Registration Cancellations Continue

Between 2012 and 2018, Brian Kemp's office canceled over 1.4 million voters' registrations in Georgia, with nearly 700,000 cancellations in 2017 alone. Kemp oversaw the removals as secretary of state, and did so eight months after declaring his candidacy for governor.

2018: Accusations of Voter Suppression

During the 2018 gubernatorial election, Brian Kemp faced accusations of voter suppression based on actions taken as Secretary of State.

2018: Opposition to Automatic Voter Registration

In 2018, Brian Kemp expressed his opposition to automatic voter registration. In a leaked recording, he stated that attempts to register all eligible voters "continues to concern us, especially if everybody uses and exercises their right to vote."

2018: District Judge Rules Against Kemp

In 2018, District Judge Eleanor L. Ross ruled against Brian Kemp, stating that the "exact match" system places a "severe burden" on voters.

2018: Randolph County Polling Location Closures Controversy

In 2018, a consultant recommended the closure of seven out of nine county polling locations in majority-minority Randolph County due to non-compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act. After a challenge from the American Civil Liberties Union, the locations remained open. Kemp denied knowledge of the plan.

2018: Voting Machine Issues on Election Day

In 2018, after a court ruling, thousands of voting machines were sequestered by local election officials on Election Day, leading to increased wait times at polling locations. This disproportionately affected counties that favored Kemp's opponent. Some locations experienced delays due to machines being delivered without power cords, and Kemp himself faced technical problems while attempting to vote.

2018: Election Law Changes

In April 2019, Brian Kemp signed legislation into law addressing some criticisms that arose from the contested 2018 election. The new law provides that polling places cannot be changed 60 days before an election, that county election officials cannot reject absentee ballots because of mismatched signatures, and that a voter whose voter registration application information does not match other government databases will not be removed from the voter rolls for this reason.

2018: House Investigation

On March 6, 2019, it was revealed that both Brian Kemp and his successor as secretary of state, Brad Raffensperger, were under investigation by the House Oversight and Reform Committee for alleged voter suppression in the 2018 elections.

March 6, 2019: House Investigation

On March 6, 2019, it was revealed that both Brian Kemp and his successor as secretary of state, Brad Raffensperger, were under investigation by the House Oversight and Reform Committee for alleged voter suppression in the 2018 elections.

March 20, 2019: Deadline to Comply with Document Requests

On March 6, 2019, it was revealed that both Brian Kemp and his successor as secretary of state, Brad Raffensperger, were under investigation by the House Oversight and Reform Committee for alleged voter suppression in the 2018 elections. Brian Kemp was given until March 20, 2019, to comply with document requests or face a subpoena.

April 2019: Election Law Changes

In April 2019, Brian Kemp signed legislation into law addressing some criticisms that arose from the contested 2018 election. The new law provides that polling places cannot be changed 60 days before an election, that county election officials cannot reject absentee ballots because of mismatched signatures, and that a voter whose voter registration application information does not match other government databases will not be removed from the voter rolls for this reason.

May 2019: Passage of Abortion Bill

In May 2019, Brian Kemp signed into law a controversial bill prohibiting abortions after a fetal heartbeat can be detected, typically around six weeks of pregnancy. This was one of the country's strictest anti-abortion laws.

October 2019: Preliminary Injunction Against Abortion Bill

In October 2019, a preliminary injunction blocked the May 2019 abortion bill from going into effect, due to rulings by federal courts that it was unconstitutional.

April 1, 2020: Statewide Stay-at-Home Order

On April 1, 2020, Brian Kemp announced a statewide stay-at-home order to combat the COVID-19 pandemic. He was among the last governors to issue such an order, and he stated he had only become aware that day that the coronavirus could be spread by asymptomatic people.

May 2020: Job Approval Rating Decline

A May 2020 Ipsos poll showed that Brian Kemp's job approval rating had declined to 39 percent among Georgians, making him among the nation's least popular governors, attributed to his handling of the coronavirus crisis.

July 2020: Prohibition of Mask Mandates

In July 2020, Brian Kemp prohibited Georgia cities and counties from requiring face masks to halt the spread of COVID-19, even as coronavirus cases were surging and other states were implementing statewide mask mandates.

July 2020: Permanent Injunction Against Abortion Bill

In July 2020, a permanent injunction was entered that permanently voided the May 2019 abortion law. This injunction was later overturned with the 2022 Supreme Court decision Dobbs v. Jackson Women's Health Organization.

November 2020: Job Approval Rating Decline

In November 2020, Brian Kemp's approval rating fell to 37 percent, according to an IAG/Fox 5 poll.

November 2020: Trump expressed being "ashamed" of supporting Kemp

In November 2020, in a Fox News interview, Donald Trump said he was "ashamed" of having supported Brian Kemp's 2018 gubernatorial campaign and criticized his handling of the 2020 election results.

December 2020: Trump called for Kemp's resignation

In December 2020, Donald Trump called for Brian Kemp's resignation. Also that month, attorney Lin Wood called for the imprisonment of both Kemp and Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger.

2020: Refusal to Overturn Election Results

During the primary election, Kemp was endorsed by former Vice President Mike Pence. He faced a primary challenge from former U.S. Senator David Perdue, who was endorsed by former President Donald Trump after Kemp refused to overturn the results of the 2020 presidential election in Georgia.

2020: Criticism from Donald Trump

Following the 2020 presidential election in Georgia, Brian Kemp faced criticism from President Donald Trump for certifying the results as required by state law, despite Trump's false claims of election fraud.

January 2021: Trump criticized Kemp for certifying Georgia's results

In January 2021, Donald Trump criticized Brian Kemp for certifying Georgia's results, leading to speculation about a Trump-backed primary challenger in 2022.

March 2021: Signing of SB 202

In March 2021, Brian Kemp signed SB 202, which expanded early in-person voting, enacted ID requirements for absentee voting, gave the legislature power to overrule or replace local election officials, and banned anyone other than election workers from providing food or water to voters waiting in line.

December 2021: David Perdue announced candidacy for governor with Trump's endorsement

In December 2021, David Perdue announced his candidacy for governor, with Donald Trump's endorsement.

2022: Speculation of Trump-backed primary challenger

In 2022, there was speculation that Brian Kemp would face a Trump-backed primary challenger, due to Trump's criticism in January 2021.

2022: Permanent Injunction Against Abortion Bill

The injunction was later overturned with the 2022 Supreme Court decision Dobbs v. Jackson Women's Health Organization.

2024: Maternal Deaths Due to Abortion Restrictions

By 2024, at least two women had died in Georgia after they were unable to access legal abortions and timely medical care, attributed to the vague and conflicting exceptions in the abortion ban.