What’s on the Democratic ballot? 

by Mackenzie N. Morgan

In addition to electing local, state and federal officials, DeKalb voters who pull a Democratic Party ballot will have four straw poll questions to answer. The questions on the ballot are to gauge popular opinion about certain issues. 

Here are the questions and a short summary of their background or origin:    

Should the sale and distribution of bump stocks be prohibited in the state of Georgia? 

This bill deals with blocking the sale of bump stocks–firearm modifications used to convert semiautomatic weapons into high powered military-style rifles allowing users to fire at the rate of a machine gun. This was the same device used by the Las Vegas gunman in 2017 who carried out one of the largest mass shootings in U.S. history. 

Should Georgia pull down our federal tax dollars to save rural hospitals and create more than fifty thousand jobs by expanding Medicaid? 

This bill would allow for the usage of federal tax dollars to fund hospitals that make healthcare convenient for residents and travelers in small towns. It is believed that this would also create jobs in rural areas, as well as make healthcare convenient for those in life-threatening situations. 

Should Georgia allow voters to elect our own representatives by amending our Constitution to place the power of drawing district lines under the authority of an independent, non-partisan commission? 

Georgia Democrats are pushing to create legislation that would transfer the power from state lawmakers to draw district lines  to a an independent commission to prevent giving political advantage for a particular party or group by manipulating district boundaries.

Should Georgia alleviate traffic congestion, reduce carbon emissions, and better connect communities by investing a substantial amount of existing tax dollars in mass transit? 

This question gauges whether or not taxpayers would support the expansion of mass transit services to ease traffic delays as well as lessen air pollution and its impact on the air quality.