Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp said Saturday that Major League Baseball “bowed down to the cancel culture” by moving its All-Star game from Atlanta in response to the state’s new voting law.
“We shouldn’t apologize for wanting to make it easy to vote and hard to cheat,” Mr. Kemp said at a press conference. “I will not back down. This bill is creating more accessibility.”
MLB Commissioner Robert Manfred announced Friday that the 2021 All-Star Game will be moved out of Atlanta due to Georgia’s law overhauling its election system.
“Major League Baseball fundamentally supports voting rights for all Americans and opposes restrictions to the ballot box,” Mr. Manfred said.
Mr. Kemp said MLB moved the game because President Biden and Georgia Democrat Stacey Abrams “have spent days lying to Georgians and the American people.”
The president claimed incorrectly on ESPN that the new law ends voting at 5 p.m. on Election Day. Voting hours will remain the same as before, ending at 7 p.m., under the new law.
SEE ALSO: MLB to move All-Star Game out of Atlanta in response to Georgia voter law
The law requires voters to provide ID to vote by mail, a change that critics say will disproportionately affect Black voters. The new law also says voters can start requesting ballots 78 days ahead of Election Day, instead of the previous six months.
Counties can begin sending ballots to voters 29 days before Election Day, rather than the previous 49 days.
Mr. Kemp, a Republican, said the league’s action is an alarming example of liberal cancel-culture run amok. He said the development is a wake-up call for others to “get in the fight.”
“They’re coming for you next,” Mr. Kemp said.
The governor said the boycott is likely to lead to other extreme actions over enforcing partisan viewpoints.
“What are they going to do if the [Atlanta] Braves make the playoffs?” Mr. Kemp said. “Are they going to move the damn playoff game?”
The governor said MLB “caved to fear” and “liberal lies” about the law, which he signed last month.
Major corporations based in Georgia such as Delta Airlines and Coca-Cola also have criticized the new law.
Former President Donald Trump, who lost Georgia narrowly to Democrat Joseph R. Biden last November, said Major League Baseball is “already losing tremendous numbers of fans.”
“And now they leave Atlanta with their All-Star Game because they are afraid of the Radical Left Democrats who do not want voter I.D., which is desperately needed, to have anything to do with our elections,” Mr. Trump said.
He urged fans to “boycott baseball and all of the woke companies that are interfering with free and fair elections. Are you listening Coke, Delta, and all!”
Former President Barack Obama tweeted congratulations to MLB “for taking a stand on behalf of voting rights for all citizens.”
“There’s no better way for America’s pastime to honor the great Hank Aaron, who always led by example,” Mr. Obama said of the former Atlanta Braves player.
• Dave Boyer can be reached at dboyer@washingtontimes.com.
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