The Georgia State Election Board, aligned with former President Donald Trump, is advocating for the inclusion of individuals who dispute the outcome of the 2020 presidential election in a monitoring team in Fulton County. This move has raised concerns due to the county's significant role in Joe Biden's victory in the previous election.
Despite lacking the legal authority to appoint its recommended monitors, the GOP majority within the board proceeded to vote on Tuesday to reiterate its proposal for a monitoring team in Fulton County. This decision, made just a month before the upcoming Election Day, has sparked criticism for potentially causing disruptions during the election process.
When questioned about the intention to involve partisan election deniers in the monitoring teams, board member Dr. Janice Johnston denied any such motive, emphasizing that the county holds the ultimate decision-making power regarding the selection of election precinct monitors.
On the other hand, Fulton County has taken legal action against the board, objecting to the attempt to impose election deniers as monitors. The lawsuit filed by Fulton County asserts that the State Election Board lacks the legal mandate to compel the county to accept and finance monitors chosen by the state board.
While Fulton County has already agreed to a monitoring team proposal that includes reputable individuals such as Ryan Germany, a former staff attorney for the Georgia secretary of state during the 2020 election, and members of The Carter Center, the GOP members of the state election board have raised concerns about bias and opposed the inclusion of Germany and The Carter Center as monitors.
Despite The Carter Center's esteemed history in election observation, Johnston remarked that the organization's reputation is considered to be a thing of the past according to some board members.
