Wednesday, Gov. Kay Ivey signed into law a bill passed by the Alabama Legislature last week which bans Alabama election officials from accepting private donations to fund election-related expenses.
The law bans funds known as “Zuckerbucks,” coined after Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg, from being utilized in the state of Alabama. The term was popularized after the Center for Tech and Civic Life distributed around $350 million in grants, which were funded by Zuckerberg, to election administrators nationwide in 2020.
A majority of the grants were reportedly allocated to swing counties that were carried by President Joe Biden. Seven Alabama counties were recipients of the grants: Montgomery, Macon, Wilcox, Jefferson, Hale, Dallas and Bullock Counties.
House Bill 194 was authored and spearheaded through the legislature by State Rep. Wes Allen (R-Troy), who is seeking election to the office of Alabama Secretary of State.
Allen’s bill had previously received criticism from the left-wing American Civil Liberties Union, which alleged that legislation such as his “perpetuate issues of white supremacy and discrimination.”
In a statement, Ivey proclaimed that “big tech” had worked to “undermine” election integrity and advised that the newly signed law would ensure the security of Alabama’s elections.
“In Alabama, we are committed to ensuring the integrity of our election process remains second to none,” declared Ivey. “Big tech’s efforts to undermine the integrity of our elections has no place in our country, and I’m proud to have signed legislation that ensures Alabama’s election process remains air-tight.”
Dylan Smith is a staff writer for Yellowhammer News. You can follow him on Twitter @DylanSmithAL
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