A Georgia judge has struck down several controversial rules passed in recent months by the Republican-majority Georgia Election Commission, arguing that the commission lacked the authority to enforce them. did.
Fulton County Superior Court Judge Thomas Cox Jr. ordered the seven regulations passed by the board. These include requiring ballots to be counted by hand by precinct and allowing election officials to conduct a “reasonable investigation” before certifying them. “All election-related documents created during the conduct of elections” can be inspected by election authorities and are expected to be rejected by November.
Cox argued in his ruling that the Board of Elections lacked the constitutional authority to promulgate these rules because the General Assembly did not provide “sufficient” or “realistic” parameters for elections. . [board’s] Rule-making here”, “The U.S. Constitution is [board] Prohibits the establishment of election rules for the election of federal employees. ”
The Georgia Board of Elections has come under increasing scrutiny for passing controversial rules months before the election. Even some of the state's top Republicans and their offices have expressed concerns about some of the rulemaking, particularly the hand-counting method.
This rule and Cox's recent decision are all the more important given that Georgia is one of the few battleground states that will decide whether former President Trump or Vice President Harris returns to the White House.
Trump won the Peach State in 2016, but narrowly lost to President Biden in 2020. Trump leads Harris by about 49% to 47%, according to a Georgia poll compiled by The Hill/Decision Desk headquarters.
