Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger managed to avoid a formal investigation by the State Election Board into his actions during the 2020 election, but his narrow escape raised alarm bells under the Gold Dome.
Two of the board’s four members embraced calls from conservative activists and elections skeptics to launch the probe, including one GOP member who had distanced himself from the party’s far-right wing. It led to a searing response from Raffensperger’s top deputy.
“The election wasn’t stolen and our office is surprised to see particular members of the State Election Board laying the foundation to discredit the next election,” Jordan Fuchs told the AJC.
“Once again, we don’t cater to election deniers and we will continue to focus on a smooth, secure and accurate 2024 election,” she added. “We urge others to do the same.”
Credit: Arvin Temkar/AJC
Credit: Arvin Temkar/AJC
The board’s 2-2 deadlock was one vote short of the majority needed to launch an investigation. Members followed with a unanimous vote urging lawmakers to clarify whether the board has the power to police Raffensperger, the AJC’s Mark Niesse reported.
The two Republicans who supported the motion to probe Raffensperger were Janice Johnston, who was appointed by the state GOP, and Ed Lindsey, a former state legislator appointed by the Georgia House.
Johnston’s vote was not surprising. The Georgia GOP is a frequent critic of Raffensperger and is led by Republicans who question the results of the 2020 election and promote conspiracy theories.
But the “yes” vote by Lindsey, a mainstream Republican, turned heads. Lindsey, who has opposed other efforts to validate election fraud lies, said his vote was a way to hold the office accountable.
“Today’s discussion was not on the merits of any particular claim against the secretary of state or the allegations about the 2020 election but simply whether the State Election Board has jurisdiction to hear any complaints on any subject against his office,” he said. “The vote today now sends this jurisdictional question to the General Assembly.”
As a reminder about the 2020 election: Three vote counts confirmed that Democrat Joe Biden defeated then-President Donald Trump by about 12,000 votes in Georgia, and multiple investigations have debunked allegations of widespread voter fraud.
***
Credit: Natrice Miller/AJC
Credit: Natrice Miller/AJC
GEORGIA MAPS. U.S. District Judge Steve Jones hears arguments today on whether Republican lawmakers complied with his order to draw new majority-Black legislative and congressional districts.
Jones rejected Georgia’s current political boundaries on grounds they illegally weakened Black voting power. He called for seven new majority-Black state legislative districts and one additional majority-Black U.S. House district.
Republicans carved out the new boundaries during a special legislative session this month, but did so at the expense of multiracial coalition districts, such as the one Democratic U.S. Rep. Lucy McBath of Marietta represents.
We’ll be watching closely for clues on whether Jones views the coalition districts as protected by the federal Voting Rights Act, which the AJC’s Maya T. Prabhu notes is an unsettled question in federal courts.
Analysts from both political parties see this case ultimately bound for the U.S. Supreme Court, but there’s a tight deadline to hash out the maps. Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger said his office needs the maps by Jan. 26 to build primary ballots.
***
Credit: Arvin Temkar/AJC
Credit: Arvin Temkar/AJC
LISTEN UP. The $1,000 holiday bonuses paid to state employees was the topic of Tuesday’s “Politically Georgia” radio show and podcast, with the AJC’s Martha Dalton joining the panel to outline the details.
Listen at Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcasts or wherever you listen to podcasts. And catch “Politically Georgia” as it airs live at 10 a.m. every weekday on WABE 90.1 FM, at AJC.com and at WABE.org.
***
LOST CAUSE. An effort championed by U.S. Rep. Andrew Clyde, R-Athens, to halt the removal of a 109-year-old Confederate memorial at Arlington National Cemetery has failed.
U.S. District Court Judge Rossie Alston on Tuesday lifted a temporary restraining order that blocked the dismantling of the Reconciliation Monument. The memorial’s removal was among the recommendations from the Naming Commission, formed by Congress in 2020 to review tributes and symbols to the Confederacy on federal property.
The Reconciliation Monument was funded by the United Daughters of the Confederacy, a group that paid for Confederate memorials across the country in the decades following the Civil War. The monuments are considered symbols of the “Lost Cause” movement that promoted the narrative that the Confederacy was formed on the basis of upholding Southern values and not on preventing the abolition of slavery.
Clyde sent a letter earlier this month to Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin demanding the monument remain until after Congress finishes the ongoing budget process. Another 43 House members — albeit no other Georgians — signed onto Clyde’s letter.
In a Monday interview with WDUN radio’s Martha Zoller, Clyde characterized the removal as an “absolute disgrace” and would constitute a desecration of gravesites.
He maintains the monument was created to show that the nation had begun a healing process and said President Joe Biden, who he labeled the “divider in chief,” is trying to “destroy our national unity” by supporting the memorial’s removal.
***
BUSY JANUARY. Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer and top Republican Mitch McConnell on Tuesday sent members home for the holiday break without taking a vote on new immigration policies that could also be coupled with money for Ukraine and Israel.
“As negotiators work through remaining issues, it is our hope that their efforts will allow the Senate to take swift action on the national security supplemental early in the new year,” the duo wrote in a joint statement. “In the time remaining this year, Senate and Administration negotiators will continue to work in good faith toward finalizing their agreement.”
By punting the foreign aid and border security deliberations until January, lawmakers are anticipating a grueling month. The Senate is scheduled to return Jan. 8 and the House a day later.
That gives Congress just 10 days to iron out a long-term funding agreement before a partial government shutdown deadline on Jan. 19. The remaining federal agencies only have funding through Feb. 2.
At the same time, the Republican presidential primary will be heating up with the Iowa caucuses on Jan. 15. The rhetoric on the campaign trail could have an influence on House Republicans, who will be working with a slim three-vote majority.
***
COLORADO COURT. The Colorado Supreme Court’s explosive ruling that former President Donald Trump can’t hold office again could have legal implications in Georgia, where the state’s No. 2 politician, Lt. Gov, Burt Jones, also faces an ongoing lawsuit seeking to disqualify him.
The Colorado justices found Trump violated the U.S. Constitution’s insurrection clause by seeking to reverse his 2020 defeat to President Joe Biden. The ruling requires Trump be removed from the state’s 2024 primary ballot and is expected to be appealed to the U.S. Supreme Court.
The Colorado decision could buoy the lawsuit brought against Jones, R-Jackson, in Georgia, said an attorney representing the plaintiffs in the case. But some legal analysts voiced the belief the ruling could instead benefit Jones’ defense, writes Politically Georgia’s Greg Bluestein.
***
Credit: Alyssa Pointer/AJC
Credit: Alyssa Pointer/AJC
SAVING HOSPITALS. Georgia U.S. Sens. Jon Ossoff and Raphael Warnock want Congress to extend a type of Medicaid funding that is received by 51 Georgia hospitals that serve a high number of low-income patients. Under changes scheduled to go into effect in July 2024, 23 of the facilities are at risk of losing their “Disproportionate Share Hospitals” funding.
The Macon Telegraph has more:
Sens. Raphael Warnock and Jon Ossoff, both Democrats, on Friday asked a committee to extend a waiver that gives Georgia hospitals status as “Disproportionate Share Hospitals." These are facilities that serve a higher number of Medicaid and similar patients. … The 23 hospitals are at risk of not qualifying because Social Security applications are behind and the hospitals can't claim the low-income patients on their cost reports as a result, the senators' letter states.
***
Credit: TNS
Credit: TNS
TODAY IN WASHINGTON:
- President Joe Biden delivers remarks at the Wisconsin Black Chamber of Commerce in Milwaukee about how his economic agenda is helping Black small businesses. He will also announce new federal investments in the region.
- The Senate and House are on holiday break until after the new year.
***
BARRY ON THE BENCH? Republican state Rep. Barry Fleming, a Harlem resident who lost a bid for the House speaker’s gavel last year, could be headed for a judicial post.
The Augusta Press reports Fleming is one of two Columbia County attorneys short-listed to succeed Columbia County Chief Superior Court Judge James G. Blanchard Jr., who is retiring after 21 years on the bench.
***
PARTY CRASHERS. In an undeniable sign of the Democratic rift over the Israel-Hamas war, a group of pro-Palestinian protestors crashed the Fulton County Democratic Party’s holiday happy hour at Manuel’s Tavern.
Unfurling a banner that read “ceasefire now,” a handful of demonstrators chanted “Genocide Joe has got to go” and “Free, free Palestine, Biden should be doing time.” They were eventually kicked out by police.
***
DOG OF THE DAY. After months of planning to take this week off, the Dog of the Day staff found themselves at a crossroads Tuesday night, with ocean waves crashing in the background, but Christmas dogs coming in faster than Santa’s sleigh at midnight.
Not wanting to leave these festive pooches to 2024, we’ve taken a minute out of the vacation plans to bring you Lucy Kidd. This two-and-a-half year-old Cavapoo calls the one-and-only Jane Kidd her person.
Credit: Courtesy photo
Credit: Courtesy photo
Here Lucy waits for Santa to come get his Christmas cookies, cleverly disguised as a Christmas toy herself in her best holiday pajamas.
Lucy, whether you’ve been naughty or nice, a pup this cute has to be our Dog of the Day.
Send us your dogs of any political persuasion and location, and cats on a cat-by-cat basis, to patricia.murphy@ajc.com, or DM us at @MurphyAJC. We’ll consider them in 2024.
***
AS ALWAYS, “Politically Georgia” readers are some of our favorite tipsters. Send your best scoop, gossip and insider info to greg.bluestein@ajc.com, tia.mitchell@ajc.com, patricia.murphy@ajc.com, and adam.vanbrimmer@ajc.com.
About the Authors
