DSCC Chair Catherine Cortez Masto issued the following statement on the continued refusal from Facebook and Google to lift their indefinite post-election political ad bans:
“Nearly a month has passed since November’s election, and Facebook and Google have run out of excuses for indefinitely continuing these harmful bans on political ads. The continued refusal to lift these bans in Georgia is disenfranchising voters while failing to combat the very real problems these platforms have with organic disinformation. With the voter registration deadline less than a week away and early voting starting in two weeks, these haphazard policies are making it harder for campaigns and organizations to provide Georgians with accurate election information for the runoff and effectively suppressing registration and turnout. The longer these bans continue, the more Facebook and Google are acting to help Republicans in this election. It’s past time for transparency and a clear timeline for ending these bans.”
It’s been weeks since Facebook and Google admitted to their plans to continue extending post-election bans on political ads, and in that time neither platform has provided any further clarity behind their reasoning or a clear timeline of when we can expect political ads to return. The continued ban on political ads disproportionately hurts the Ossoff and Warnock campaign outreach efforts – a benefit to both Senators Loeffler and Perdue.
The ban affects major upcoming runoff deadlines for Georgians – candidates are unable to share critical information about imminent deadlines to register to vote and request an absentee ballot for the January 5th election. The voter registration deadline is looming in less than a week on December 7th, and early voting will begin in two weeks on December 14th. Given the unusual timing of the runoff election, campaigns will have to do more voter outreach and mobilization than ever before to ensure Georgians know how and when to vote.
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