Donald Trump tells fans to ‘boycott baseball’ as MLB All-Star Game moves from Georgia over ‘restrictive’ voting law
- Commissioner said relocating event is demonstration of ‘values as a sport’ after Georgia governor Kemp introduces sweeping changes
- Former US president bemoans interfering ‘woke companies’ as White House confirms Joe Biden supports league’s decision
The decision to pull the July 13 game from Atlanta’s Truist Park amounts to the first economic backlash against Georgia for the voting law that Republican governor Brian Kemp quickly signed into law March 25.
Kemp has insisted the law’s critics have mischaracterised what it does, yet Republican lawmakers adopted the changes largely in response to false claims of fraud in the 2020 elections by former president Donald Trump and his supporters. The law includes new restrictions on voting by mail and greater legislative control over how elections are run.
Manfred said he also spoke with the Major League Baseball Players Association, which at the time of the commissioner’s decision said it had still not taken a stance.
“I have decided that the best way to demonstrate our values as a sport is by relocating this year’s All-Star Game and MLB draft,” Manfred said. “MLB fundamentally supports voting rights for all Americans and opposes restrictions to the ballot box.”
The White House said President Joe Biden supports the decision.
“The President has made his concerns about the bill passed in Georgia clear, given its extreme provisions that impact the ability of so many citizens to cast their votes,” the White House said. “He said earlier this week that if the decision was made by MLB to move the All-Star game, he would certainly support that decision – and now that MLB has made that choice, he certainly does.”
In a statement, Trump blasted the move and urged his supporters to “boycott baseball and all of the woke companies that are interfering with free and fair elections.”
Kemp called MLB’s action a “knee-jerk decision” that means “cancel culture and woke political activists are coming for every aspect of your life, sports included. If the left doesn’t agree with you, facts and the truth do not matter.”
“This attack on our state is the direct result of repeated lies from [president] Joe Biden and [former Georgia House of Representatives minority leader] Stacey Abrams about a bill that expands access to the ballot box and ensures the integrity of our elections,” Kemp said in a statement, referring to the Democratic candidate whom he narrowly defeated in the 2018 election. “I will not back down. Georgians will not be bullied.”
Georgia state house speaker David Ralston, a powerful Republican, vowed to stand behind the new law, which adds strict identification requirements for voting absentee by mail, limits the use of ballot drop boxes and makes it a crime to hand out food or water to voters waiting in line, among many other provisions.
Georgia Republicans say changes were needed to maintain voter confidence in the election system. Democrats and voting rights groups say the law will disproportionately affect communities of colour. On Wednesday, two of Georgia’s most prominent business leaders sided with the law’s opponents.
Delta CEO Ed Bastian labelled the law “unacceptable,” while Coca-Cola chief executive James Quincey called the legislation a “step backward.”
The Atlanta Braves issued a statement Friday saying the team is disappointed by Manfred’s decision.
“We are saddened that fans will not be able to see this event in our city,” the team said. “The Braves organisation will continue to stress the importance of equal voting opportunities and we had hoped our city could use this event as a platform to enhance the discussion.”
Atlanta Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms, a Democrat, said she supports MLB’s decision. Atlanta will no doubt share in the economic loss, though the Braves’ home stadium is now located outside the city, in suburban Cobb County.
“Unfortunately, the removal of the MLB All-Star Game from Georgia is likely the first of many dominoes to fall until the unnecessary barriers put in place to restrict access to the ballot box are removed,” Bottoms said in a statement.
