Judges in key battleground states have ruled that county election officials must certify results by legal deadlines even when fraud or errors are suspected.
Superior Court Judge Robert McBurney of Fulton County, Georgia, stated that “no election official (or member of the Board of Elections and Registration) may under any circumstances refuse to certify the results of an election or abstain from certifying the results of an election. It must not be done,'' the court ruled.
McBurney said that while officials have the right to investigate concerns about the vote count and review relevant documents, “delays in receiving such information do not prevent them from refusing to certify or abstain from certifying the election results.” There is no basis for doing so.”
Election results must be certified by each county in Georgia by 5 p.m. on the Monday or Tuesday following the race.
Fulton County Superior Court Judge Robert McBurney will hold a hearing to determine whether the final report by a special grand jury investigating possible interference in the 2020 presidential election can be released on January 24, 2023 in Atlanta. give a speech at the meeting. (AP Photo/John Bazemore, File)
The ruling was handed down on the same day that residents of the Peach State head to early voting, which runs from Oct. 15 to Nov. 1.
The lawsuit was filed by Julie Adams of the Fulton County Registration and Elections Commission and supported by the America First Policy Institute, a conservative group aligned with former President Donald Trump.
Adams had voted against certifying the results of the presidential primary in May. She then sued the Fulton County Board of Elections, claiming that she was unable to fulfill her duties as superintendent because her request for documents was denied and that she had the right not to certify the results.
Julie Adams' lawsuit was supported by the Trump-aligned America First Policy Institute. (Spencer Pratt/Getty Images)
Adams had requested further election documentation ahead of the certification deadline to confirm the accuracy of the results. But county officials denied her request, arguing that certification was an essential aspect of her role and that the request was outside the scope of her duties.
Other colleagues on the committee voted to certify the primary results.
McBurney said in his ruling that nothing in Georgia law gives county election officials the authority to determine whether there was fraud or what to do about it.
Instead, he said, the law requires county election officials' “concerns about fraud or systemic errors to be brought to their attention and shared with appropriate authorities, but that is not grounds for the superintendent to deny certification.” writes.
The sentence was handed down by Fulton County Superior Court Judge Robert McBurney. (AP Photo/Ben Gray, File)
Georgia, a battleground state that President Biden won by less than 1 percentage point in 2020, is facing election litigation as Republican and Democratic officials battle over voter access and election security in the state and other battleground states. It has become a hotbed.
Multiple lawsuits have been filed against a new measure passed by the State Board of Elections that would require county officials to count ballots by hand after machines count them on election night.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
