Georgia Supreme Court denies bid to reinstate election rule changes
Capitol News Beat Service
The Georgia Supreme Court Tuesday denied an expedited appeal of a Fulton County Superior Court ruling that invalidated a series of election law changes approved by the Republican-controlled State Election Board.
Tuesday’s unanimous decision means none of the rules changes opposed by Democrats and some Republicans will be in effect for the Nov. 5 elections.
Last week’s decision in the Fulton County case came in a lawsuit filed by Eternal Vigilance Action, a Georgia-based advocacy group headed by former Republican state Rep. Scot Turner.
“The quick decision by a Fulton County judge followed closely by a unanimous vote of the state Supreme Court should erase any doubt about the merits of our arguments,” Turner said Tuesday. “I’m a Republican and this is a conservative policy organization. I do not like fighting my friends, but in this instance, fealty to the Georgia Constitution demands it.”
A Fulton County Superior Court judge last week invalidated seven changes to state election laws the Republican-controlled State Election Board (SEB) adopted in recent weeks.
In an 11-page ruling, Judge Thomas Cox Jr. declared the board lacked the legal authority to adopt the rules.
“All rules enacted by the SEB must be consistent with the Existing Election Code and the Georgia Constitution,” Cox wrote. “Stated another way, the SEB’s authority can only extend to ‘adopt rules and regulations to carry into effect a law already passed’ or otherwise ‘administer and effectuate an existing enactment of the General Assembly.’ “
Cox’s ruling followed two similar decisions handed down earlier last week by Fulton Judge Robert McBurney that invalidated two of the new SEB rules requiring counties to hand-count the number of ballots cast at polling places on Election Day and allowing local election officials to delay certifying results in order to conduct a “reasonable inquiry” if they suspect voter fraud. McBurney wrote that the rules were adopted too close to Election Day.
Wednesday’s ruling applied to both of those rules in addition to five others the SEB’s three-member Republican majority has passed since August that would:
- give county election board members access to all election-related documentation created as the election was being conducted.
- require signatures and photo IDs to accompany absentee ballots.
- provide video surveillance and recording of absentee ballot drop boxes after the polls close.
- expand designated areas for poll watchers.
- add new requirements for county election boards in reporting absentee ballot information.
The three Republican SEB members who supported the rules changes said they would restore public confidence by restoring fairness and integrity to the electoral process.
But opponents – including Democrats and some Republicans – accused the three of seeking to sow confusion into the counting of ballots by delaying certification of results, potentially to the benefit of former President Donald Trump.