Election boards must certify results, despite new Georgia rules, Fulton judge says

[RandySF]

A Fulton County judge appeared unlikely to toss out a new rule by the Georgia Election Board requiring county officials to investigate election results, saying they have no choice but to certify them.

In a two-hour trial held Tuesday, Fulton County Superior Court Judge Robert McBurney said state law requires county election boards to certify results one week after Election Day, bringing consensus to a question raised by Republicans who have argued that certification is optional.

Democrats who filed the lawsuit said the new rule created an opening for rogue election board members to reject the results.

McBurney didn’t immediately decide the case against the Republican-controlled State Election Board after it recently approved a rule calling for an undefined “reasonable inquiry” prior to certification on Nov. 12. Democrats have warned that the rule could lead to disputes over the vote count.

“The deadline is the deadline. Get done what you can. What is reasonable to one person might be not reasonable to another. But you make your inquiry and then it’s wheels up at 5 pm. on the 12th of November,” McBurney said.



https://www.ajc.com/politics/democrats-are-fighting-georgias-election-certification-rules-in-court/WHNJ3VH25BCATOGJAS55TGINFQ/

[spooky3]

1. That first sentence needed an AJC editor.

I think they meant that the judge IS likely to toss out the new rule.

[Silent Type]

2. Just the opposite. Judge is not likely to toss "reasonable inquiry" rule because even if it causes problems for a day

or two, the counties have to certify the vote as best they can within a week. They can review all kinds of stuff, but by Nov 12th they have to certify even if they still have some questions or are ticked because their boy lost.

Hopefully, the Judge's formal ruling will provide a little more clarification.

Some good info:
https://www.brennancenter.org/our-work/research-reports/georgia-election-certification-processes-and-guardrails

[Think. Again.]

3. Yeah, the way I read it...

...the judge said they can investigate all they want but must certify by the deadline regardless of that.