Judge fires off warning to Trump-backed election board over 'vague' new dictates
A Georgia judge signaled that he believes new, controversial county certification rules put in place by Trump-backed State Board of Elections members are too "vague" and should be clarified, CNN reported Tuesday.
This comes after the state and national Democratic Party filed a lawsuit challenging the rules, which say that county election officials may conduct “reasonable inquiry” and “examine all election related documentation created during the conduct of elections prior to certification of results.”
In a Tuesday bench trial, Fulton County Superior Court Judge Robert McBurney warned the rule to conduct a “reasonable inquiry” is “vague and needs clarification” — a potential warning sign for the pro-Trump officials.
“New rules seem to pop up every 20 minutes,” he said, referencing the Supreme Court's precedent in Purcell v. Gonzalez that election rules should not be changed too close to an election. “And the election is getting closer, not further away.”
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The new rules, enacted after Trump personally intervened to appoint a majority of the state election board, sparked outcry from election observers and even from some Republican officials, who believe it will lay the groundwork to let Trump-aligned county officials block certification of results that go against the former president. The rules could essentially codify the "Stop the Steal" conspiracy theory into law — and trigger a constitutional crisis in which election results hang in limbo without certification before the deadline when electors must meet.
The Trump-backed officials have made several other disputed changes as well, and even the Republican secretary of state, Brad Raffensperger, has warned them that some of the rule changes are likely unlawful.
All of this comes as the Trump campaign and the national Republican Party have diverted resources from traditional voter canvassing and outreach to recruiting "poll watchers" and preparing for legal challenges to any state where Trump may be defeated.