Georgia state senator arrested at protest calling for tallying of uncounted ballots

Georgia state Sen. Nikema Williams (D) was one of several protesters arrested Tuesday at a protest at the Georgia state Capitol building in Atlanta calling for uncounted ballots from last week’s midterm elections to be tallied. 

Williams told The Washington Post he was arrested “because I refused to leave the floor of this building where I’m a state senator,” adding that she was “standing peacefully beside constituents I represent.” 

{mosads}Protesters chanted “Count every vote,” and held signs bearing the slogan in the statehouse rotunda.

The protests come as state election officials continue to tally uncounted ballots in The Peach State’s tight gubernatorial race between Stacey Abrams and Brian Kemp.

U.S. District Judge Amy Totenberg ruled Monday that Georgia’s secretary of state office must begin counting provisional ballots. She also ruled that the office must set up a website or other official system to notify voters if their ballots were accepted or not. 

Kemp currently holds a slim lead over Abrams, but the Abrams camp hopes that the remaining ballots will push Kemp’s total below 50 percent, triggering a December runoff.