A Georgia judge on Wednesday struck down several new election rules, saying the measures approved by the state’s Republican-controlled Board of Elections were “unconstitutional” and violated state law.
The ruling by Fulton County Superior Court Judge Thomas Cox applies to seven rules. manual counting rule It depends on the ballot and rules for election day certificateying results.
Cox wrote that it had five members board included the three officials cheered by former President Donald Trump “he lacked the authority to enforce these rules” and the measures were “unlawful, unconstitutional and invalid.”
Georgia’s secretary of state and the State Board of Elections did not immediately respond to requests for comment Wednesday evening.
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Tuesday by Fulton County Superior Court Judge Robert McBurney blocked the rule requiring manual counting of ballots Election day, which critics argue will cause delays in reporting the final results. McBurney also ruled on the state’s county election commissions could not refuse to approve election results.
The lawsuit was filed by a pair of Georgia voters, including former Republican state Rep. Scott Turner. He heads the Eternal Vigilance Action Group, which advocates electoral politics. Their lawyers said in a filing last month that the board’s adoption of the rules “risks destabilizing Georgia’s voting, vote counting and vote certification processes.”
Turner On Tuesday, X praised the verdict.
“This is a victory for the Constitution and the principle of separation of powers,” he wrote. “Every conservative should see this as a victory and a significant boost to the unelected council’s legislation. We thank Judge Cox for his efficient ruling.”
The American Civil Liberties Union, which represents civil rights groups that intervened in the case, called the decision “a major victory for the right to vote.”
The state’s new election rules have also faced significant criticism and legal challenges from the Democratic National Committee and the state Democratic Party. He sued the Election Council on the new rules in August.
Voters in the battleground state, where Trump narrowly lost to Joe Biden in 2020, began heading to the polls for early in-person voting on Tuesday. An election official at the Secretary of State’s office said that more than 300,000 ballots were counted on the first day after polling stations were closed. re breakcord It is set for the first day of early voting in the 2020 contest.
More than a dozen allies of Trump and his administration, including senior officials, have been indicted in connection with efforts to overturn his 2020 election loss to Biden in Georgia. The case was suspended due to disqualification attempts Fulton County District Attorney Fanny Willis as a prosecutor.