With a right-wing majority embraced by Donald Trump, an increasingly politicized Georgia Election Board plans Tuesday to review allegations about the 2020 vote count and finalize a new rule for certifying elections this fall.
Trump praised three of the board’s Republican members by name at his Atlanta rally on Saturday, elevating their profile as they review a total of 15 changes to election rules, including a proposal requiring a “reasonable inquiry” before counties approve election results.
“They’re on fire. They’re doing a great job, three members: Janice Johnston, Rick Jeffares and Janelle King,” Trump said. “Three people are all pit bulls fighting for honesty, transparency and victory.”
Those three Republicans attempted to approve election rules during a hastily called meeting last month without the board’s other two members — Republican Chairman John Fervier and Democrat Sara Tindall Ghazal. The board later voted unanimously to redo its votes following a lawsuit alleging the meeting violated the Georgia Open Meetings Act.
Credit: Hyosub Shin/AJC
Credit: Hyosub Shin/AJC
The meeting Tuesday is expected to attract hundreds of Republican voters who pack State Election Board meetings to cheer and boo proposals as they demand action ahead of this year’s presidential contest.
As Trump continues to falsely claim that the 2020 election was stolen, Republican voters have responded by swarming State Election Board meetings with complaints about Georgia’s elections. The board has previously dismissed many allegations from the 2020 election, including cases of drop box ballot-stuffing and ineligible voters.
Republican legislators have made changes to election laws each year to address concerns by Trump and their constituents, including setting limits on drop boxes, requiring more voter ID, adding a ban on nongovernmental election funding and expanding voter eligibility challenges.
Voting rights groups oppose the proposed rule that calls for a “reasonable inquiry” before certifying election results, saying it could be misused by partisan election board members to reject the results of the presidential race.
“The Trump-aligned Georgia election board members are working to change the state’s election rules with less than 100 days until the election,” Fair Fight Action spokesman Max Flugrath said on X. “Here in Georgia, we’re watching as Trump and his allies prepare to sabotage the 2024 election by changing the rules around certification election results.”
Other rule proposals under consideration would give greater access to election observers, require election workers to hand-count the number of ballots after polls closed to ensure accuracy, and conduct recounts by hand instead of machine.
The board is also reviving one of the last investigations of the 2020 election: a case alleging that Fulton County double-counted over 3,000 ballots during a recount.
The counting errors didn’t change the outcome of the close election between Trump and Democrat Joe Biden, but Republican board members have said they wanted more accountability from Fulton beyond a reprimand issued in May.
The board plans to vote on a proposal for election monitors to watch Fulton’s election this year, but it’s unclear whether it will pass amid disagreement over who should serve on the observation team.
Fulton’s election board has already signed off on the monitoring plan, which was a condition for resolving the double-counting case. The board previously conducted a performance review of Fulton’s election management that recommended against a state takeover, finding that the county has made improvements since 2020.
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