The Democratic National Committee, the Democratic Party of Georgia, and several individuals have filed a civil suit against the Georgia State Election Board over new election rules that conflict with state law mandating certification of election results. The two rules in question, the reasonable inquiry rule and the examination rule, were passed by the election board and are being challenged in court for conflicting with Georgia’s statutes governing certification and for not following required procedures for rulemaking. The plaintiffs seek to pause the rules that conflict with existing law and to declare that election results must be certified by the statutory deadline of Nov. 12.
Democratic representatives have called for the removal of the three GOP board members who approved the new rules, accusing them of acting outside the scope of their authority. The rules in question would allow for “reasonable inquiry” before certification, which critics argue could lead to election chaos as the term is not clearly defined. Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger, a Republican, has criticized the rules as last-minute chaos that could pose serious problems in the upcoming election.
The lawsuit also challenges the examination rule, which would allow county boards to demand access to election-related documentation for examination before certification. The suit claims that the rules give individual board members broad powers to hunt for election irregularities, turning the certification process into a discretionary act. The plaintiffs seek a declaration that certification is mandatory and seek an injunction of the rules if found to be inconsistent with certification obligations. The lawsuit aims to prevent potential challenges to election results in the upcoming election in Georgia, a state that is expected to be a battleground once again.
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