The Georgia Supreme Court has denied a request by national and state Republicans to immediately reinstate election rules that were recently deemed invalid by a judge.
Last week, Judge Thomas Cox of the Fulton County Superior Court made a ruling stating that the newly adopted rules by the State Election Board lacked authority and were deemed “illegal, unconstitutional, and void.” In response to this ruling, the Republican National Committee and the Georgia Republican Party appealed to the highest court in Georgia. They requested an expedited handling of the case and for the rules to be reinstated during the appeal process.
The Supreme Court has denied the request for expedited handling and has chosen not to suspend Cox’s order. According to the court’s order, the appeal will be processed in the usual manner, indicating that it will likely take several months before a ruling is made.
The new rules have generated significant attention, particularly focusing on three specific requirements. Firstly, there is a mandate for three poll workers to manually count the ballots, rather than just the votes, once the polls have closed. Additionally, the other two regulations pertain to the certification process for county election results.
The State Election Board, consisting of a Republican majority, has garnered praise from former President Donald Trump during a rally in Atlanta in August. Despite objections from the board’s lone Democrat and the nonpartisan chair, the majority voted to adopt several rules in August and September. In response, there have been at least six lawsuits filed, each challenging one or more of these rules.
Judges have taken swift action to schedule and conduct hearings in those cases, considering the limited time frame due to the upcoming November general election.
In a lawsuit brought forward by Eternal Vigilance Action, an organization founded and led by former state Rep. Scot Turner, a Republican, Cox delivered his ruling. The lawsuit argued that the State Election Board had exceeded its authority in implementing the seven rules. Cox not only declared the rules null and void but also instructed the State Election Board to promptly notify all state and local election officials about the invalidity of the rules, emphasizing that they should not be enforced.
In a phone interview on Tuesday, Turner expressed his relief for the election workers. He emphasized that they would not have to undergo new training for the election rules, considering the limited two-week timeframe remaining before Election Day. County election officials had previously voiced their concerns about the challenging timeline for implementing these rules. They feared that it could lead to confusion among poll workers and ultimately undermine public trust in the election outcomes.
The Georgia Supreme Court order has prompted the Associated Press to seek comments from both the state and national Republican parties.
An earlier ruling from Judge Robert McBurney of Fulton County Superior Court had already temporarily blocked the rule requiring a hand-count. Judge McBurney decided to block the rule while he evaluates the merits of the case, stating that implementing it so close to the general election would result in chaos.
In addition to the rules mentioned above, Cox also struck down two other newly implemented rules related to certification. The first rule mandates county officials to conduct a “reasonable inquiry” before certifying election results, without providing a clear definition of what constitutes a reasonable inquiry. The second rule grants county election officials the authority to examine all election-related documentation generated during the electoral process.
According to Cox, there are other rules that he believes to be illegal and unconstitutional.
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- Require someone delivering an absentee ballot in person to provide a signature and photo ID.
- Demand video surveillance and recording of ballot drop boxes after polls close during early voting.
- Expand the mandatory designated areas where partisan poll watchers can stand at tabulation centers.
- Require daily public updates of the number of votes cast during early voting.
