Democrats sue swing states' electoral commission for alleged power grab

The Georgia State Election Board was sued Monday by several election officials and Democrats over recent rules passed by three Trump-confirmed board members.

The plaintiffs want to ensure that the new rules do not result in the results of the November election being certified in a timely manner.

The two provisions in question require election officials to conduct a “reasonable investigation” into the accuracy of the results before certifying them and allow them to allow individual members of the precinct election committees to inspect “election-related documents created during the conduct of the election.”

Georgia county election officials and the Democrats who filed the suit acknowledged that, on their face, the rules appear to respect certification deadlines because they allow only a “reasonable investigation” or “audit” that would not delay certification beyond the statutory deadline.

However, the rules could still delay certification because they give officials permission to look for any kind of election irregularity, the lawsuit says.

“At a minimum, these new requirements introduce significant uncertainty into the post-election process and – if interpreted as their drafters propose – they lead to chaos by establishing new processes that conflict with existing statutory duties,” the plaintiffs said.

The five members of the Georgia State Election Board did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the lawsuit. In an earlier comment, member Janelle King, one of the three supporters of the new rules, told USA TODAY that no approved rules would allow county officials to violate state law by delaying certification.

“In fact, it works the other way around. By ensuring that every member of the county board of elections has access to all election-related materials, it actually strengthens the certification process,” said King, the former deputy state director of the Republican Party of Georgia.

Former President Donald Trump praised King and the two other members who ultimately supported the rules – Dr. Janice Johnston and Rick Jaffares – by name at a campaign rally on August 3, describing them as “pit bulls fighting for honesty, transparency and victory.”

Republican board members must expect calls for their resignation

Also on Monday, Democratic lawmakers from Georgia called for the resignation of the three members praised by Trump at a press conference, local Atlanta news channel Fox 5 reported.

Georgia state Senator Nabilah Islam Parkes said the integrity of her state's electoral process was under “serious threat,” while U.S. Rep. Lucy McBath said failure to protect democracy could mean “descending into chaos.”

In response to ethics complaints against the board, Republican Governor Brian Kemp's office released a letter saying, “This office has received letters from Senator Nabilah Islam Parkes and others alleging ethics violations by members of the State Elections Board. Due to uncertainty about whether this office has the authority to respond to these complaints under Code Section 45-10-4, we have sought advice from the Attorney General regarding the application of the law to the letters. We will respond upon receipt of that advice and further evaluation of the letters.” Kemp rejected Trump's requests for help in overturning the 2020 election in Georgia.

King told the local newspaper that she joined the panel “to do the right thing” and that she has no partisan political affiliations. “Before I agree to do something, I ask the right questions, talk to lawyers and make sure I'm within the law.”

In the lawsuit, the plaintiffs argued that many election officials in Georgia counties have objected to the certification of the election since 2020, including one county official as recently as March of this year.

They are calling on the Fulton County Superior Court to “prevent chaos in November” by making clear – through what is known as a “declaratory judgment” – that the federal deadlines for certifying results are binding and that the new rules do not change that.

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