The Republican elected official sat for the interview with 11Alive’s The Georgia Vote just days before a new presidential administration is set to take office.
ATLANTA — In a one-on-one interview, Georgia Sec. of State Brad Raffensperger laid out his priorities headed into the new legislative session and discussed the 2020 and 2024 presidential elections that put his name in the national spotlight.
The Republican elected official sat for the interview with 11Alive’s The Georgia Vote just days before a new presidential administration is set to take office.
Excerpts of the conversation are below. The full interview can be found in the video player above and on-demand on the 11Alive+ streaming app.
President-Elect Trump’s inauguration
The Georgia Vote’s Zach Merchant: In 2020 you faced real pressure from now-President-Elect Donald Trump and others to find evidence of what he described as widespread voter fraud here in Georgia, evidence that you said repeatedly and your office said repeatedly did not exist. President-Elect Trump will take the oath of office in a few days. When you watch him do that, what’s going to be going through your mind?
Sec. of State Brad Raffensperger: Well, we made sure we had free, fair, and fast elections, every election that I’ve been the supervisor of elections for the last six years, and so, we feel good where we are and we’ve actually shown the model of what it should look like because voters in Georgia, over 90%, trust our system. I wish him well.
Raffensperger’s legislative priorities
The secretary of state has staked out licensing reform as a major priority headed into the new state legislative session and is pushing lawmakers to change how Georgia administers professional licenses for jobs in nursing, cosmetology and many others. He argues the system could be streamlined to allow many applicants to more quickly obtain licenses.
Raffensperger: Licensing reform. I think that’s our number one focus. Obviously we may look at a few little tweaks with election law, but really when you have over 94% of all Georgians trust that it doesn’t need a lot of tweaking. But licensing reform is something we can really help Georgians, hardworking Georgians, that are looking for a break from government, and we have got to understand we work for the people and we need to reduce barriers so that they can get out there and put food on the table for themselves and for their families.
His future plans
Raffensperger, now in his second term as secretary of state, has not announced any plans for a run for higher office. However, some political analysts consider him a potential candidate in 2026, when the governor’s mansion and a U.S. Senate seat will be on the ballot.
Merchant: What is next for you when you leave office?
Raffensperger: Well, you never know. I’m sure we’ll have plenty of options and lots of discussions, but right now, we’re just focusing on this session. We think that’s the best thing because you start talking about the future too far out, I think that you know you can start getting off message and defocused. We think licensing reform is really a moral imperative because it really gets down to where the rubber meets the road. We want to make sure we don’t stifle innovation, we don’t stifle job creation. That’s really important for everyday Georgians.
Merchant: You’ve been in Georgia politics a long time though. It sounds like you are leaving your future options open right now.
Raffesnperger: Well, you never know where the future holds anything, but I just want to make sure that Georgia is a great place to build a business, great place to raise a family, and build your career.
