georgia senator arrested in voting protest

Demanding that every vote be counted, Georgia state senator Nikema Williams was arrested Tuesday morning during a protest at Georgia’s state capital in downtown Atlanta.

Crowds of protestors gathered to call on officials to count every vote from last week’s midterms election, including provisional, absentee, and early voter ballots. If that sounds like something that shouldn’t need to be said, you’ll be shocked to know that some people don’t want those votes to matter. Which is why politicians and activists like Williams are willing to be arrested; to ensure that every Georgian has a voice.

During the arrest, police told citizens that they were being taken into custody for disrupting “orderly conduct of official business.” It was later announced that she would additionally be charged with misdemeanor obstruction of justice. “[I was arrested] because I refused to leave the floor of this building where I’m a state senator,” Williams told the Washington Post.

The gubernatorial race between Stacey Abrams and Brian Kemp remains tight with less than 58,000 between them, as of yesterday.