“It means cancel culture and partisan activists are coming for your business,” Georgia Governor Brian P. Kemp said after the MLB decided to move this year’s All-Star Game out of Atlanta to show its concern for voting rights in the state.
Major League Baseball said it’s moving this year’s All-Star Game and the MLB Draft event from Atlanta to show its concern for voting rights in the state of Georgia.
“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,” Commissioner Robert Manfred Jr. said. “Major League Baseball fundamentally supports voting rights for all Americans and opposes restrictions to the ballot box.”
Manfred didn’t specifically mention Georgia’s new election law signed by Governor Brian Kemp on March 25, which its supporters called a measure to restore “integrity” after unfounded allegations of fraud in the 2020 presidential election and opponents called an act of voter suppression.
Last week, with pressure mounting in the state, groups were threatening consumer boycotts of Coca-Cola Co., Delta Air Lines Inc. and other companies that have supported the bill’s sponsors. Former President Donald Trump weighed in, calling for a boycott of baseball and naming the two companies.
“Baseball is already losing tremendous numbers of fans,” he said in a statement. “Boycott baseball and all of the woke companies that are interfering with Free and Fair Elections. Are you listening Coke, Delta, and all!”
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The governor also responded with a series of tweets criticizing the MLB’s move. MLB “caved to fear, political opportunism and liberal lies,” he wrote.
Florida GOP Senator Marco Rubio on Friday criticized “woke corporate hypocrites” in a tweet.
In a statement, the team it was “deeply disappointed” by the decision. “We are saddened that fans will not be able to see this event in our city,” the Braves said, adding that the team said it “will continue to stress the importance of equal voting opportunities.”
Former President Barack Obama on Saturday commended MLB in a tweet for “taking a stand on behalf of voting rights for all citizens.”
Manfred said his decision follows “thoughtful conversations with Clubs, former and current players, the Players Association, and The Players Alliance, among others.” He said the league is “finalizing a new host city.”