Georgia House limits political campaigns from interacting with minors

Michelle Baruchman, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution on Mar 31, 2025

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Political campaigns in Georgia would face limits in the kind of personal information they can seek regarding students, particularly minors, under a bill that passed the House on Monday.

The legislation was spurred by a contentious state Senate race last fall between incumbent Shawn Still and challenger Ashwin Ramaswami in a district that covers parts of Forsyth, Fulton and Gwinnett counties. The two fought over Ramaswami’s public records request seeking the names of students at a local high school.

Ramaswami, a Democrat, said he was seeking to reach 18-year-olds and young voters, and had requested those names to organize a voter-registration drive and find ways “to get more young people involved in politics.”

But in a previous interview with The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, Still said Ramaswami’s story changed multiple times and called his request “creepy and weird.” As a result, the Republican sponsored Senate Bill 212, which passed in the House by a vote of 98-66 on Monday. The bill now heads to the governor’s desk.

The bill prohibits the disclosure of public students’ records to political candidates or those acting on their behalf.

State Rep. Todd Jones, who sponsored the bill in the House, said it is imperative to protect children.

“We’re talking about data of minors, and we must at all times put a protective shield over these individuals to make sure their information is not getting out, especially for nefarious purposes,” said Jones, a Republican from South Forsyth.

Democrats amended the bill to ensure that organizations, with permission of the school, can hold voter registration events.

However, that change did not satisfy the more than half dozen Democrats who spoke against the bill.

“This bill is not about privacy. It’s about stopping students from organizing, mobilizing and turning out to vote in record numbers, just as they have before,” said state Rep. Bryce Berry of Atlanta, who is the youngest member of the House.

State Rep. Imani Barnes of Tucker said she was concerned the bill would discourage young people from voting.

“This is especially troubling, given that young people already face barriers to civic engagement as we are making it hard for them to protest on campus,” she said.

Still, who watched the debate in the House, said it’s “unfortunate” that none of the debate got to the heart of his bill, which he said is about protecting students and aligning Georgia with statutes already present in other states.

Still defeated Ramaswami 54% to 46% in November.

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