Judge OKs Network Exit Polls in Georgia

ATLANTA — A federal judge Tuesday gave the three major television networks the go-ahead to take exit polls at Georgia voting places during the Super Tuesday presidential primaries next week.

CBS, NBC and ABC had sued state and Fulton County election officials to stop enforcement of a 1985 law prohibiting exit polls or public opinion surveys within 250 feet of a polling place.

U.S. District Judge Robert Hall on Tuesday issued an injunction stopping the state from enforcing the new law beyond 25 feet of buildings in which polling places are located. The ruling came after a hearing Monday. Hall indicated that he would rule later on the networks’ contention that the law violates the Constitution’s First Amendment guarantees of freedom of speech and of the press.