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Calls to change Georgia State Election Board
State lawmakers and civil rights leaders are calling for Georgia's governor to take action against members of the State Election Board after accusations they violated state law in the effort to change election certification rules.
ATLANTA - Georgia state lawmakers, clergy members, and civil rights leaders are urging Gov. Brian Kemp to take disciplinary action against three members of the State Election Board. This comes after a complaint filed last week claimed board members violated state law in the effort to change election certification rules.
The three members in question, Janelle King, Rick Jeffares, and Dr. Janice Johnston, are accused of violating the state’s Open Meetings Act and facing ethics complaints stemming from the approval of changes that would now require local election boards to look for discrepancies before they can certify results.
The changes made so close to Election Day have drawn criticism from lawmakers on both sides of the aisle, including Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger.
"These election board members that are not acting in the good faith of Georgians need to be immediately removed," Democratic state Sen. Nabilah Islam-Parkes told FOX 5.
Days after the majority Republican election board finalized new rules requiring county election officials to take additional measures before certifying results, Islam-Parkes filed an ethics complaint with the state in hopes Georgia’s top conservative would step in and take action.
"Three of the board members violated the Open Meetings Act and the state code of ethics," she said.
Those accusations stemmed from an impromptu July 12th meeting board members called to vote on new requirements for counties to review documents and verify overseas military ballot counts.
"They didn’t send out a notice to the public. They were warned by their own general counsel. They had it anyway," Islam-Parkes stated.
A meeting of the State Elections Board.
The move by King, Johnston and Jeffares — all touted as "pit bulls" for "victory" by former President Trump —has drawn criticism from Georgia politicians on both sides of the aisle.
Islam-Parkes said she questions whether they have the authority to make the changes.
"The election board is supposed to certify election results and so passing illegal rules to undermine the integrity of our elections is extremely concerning," she said.
With Kemp and Trump seemingly putting their differences aside for the sake of their party, it’s unclear what action the governor will take in response to the complaint.
Islam-Parkes said she hopes he’ll "do the right thing".
FOX 5 has reached out to Kemp and those election board members for comment on this. We’re still waiting to hear back.
Islam-Parkes says she will hold a press conference on the matter at the Georgia State Capitol at 10 a.m. on Monday.