MLB will move the 2021 All-Star Game and 2021 draft out of Atlanta in response to a new voting law in Georgia.
“Major League Baseball fundamentally supports voting rights for all Americans and opposes restrictions to the ballot box,” MLB commissioner Rob Manfred said in a statement. “In 2020, MLB became the first professional sports league to join the non-partisan Civic Alliance to help build a future in which everyone participates in shaping the United States. We proudly used our platform to encourage baseball fans and communities throughout our country to perform their civic duty and actively participate in the voting process. Fair access to voting continues to have our game’s unwavering support.”
Critics of the law, which was signed by Gov. Brian Kemp in March, have said it restricts access to the ballot box, particularly for Black voters and other voters of color.
MLB’s decision comes after President Joe Biden said he would “strongly support” moving the game due to the law.
This is a breaking news story. It will be updated.
