Election board’s action usurps legislative powers

Well folks, it looks like we now have two legislatures in Georgia.

First, there’s the General Assembly, with 235 senators and representatives elected by the voters and entrusted by our Constitution with the exclusive authority to enact our state’s laws.

But now we have a second legislature that consists of three unelected GOP members of the State Election Board, whom former President Donald Trump has affectionately nicknamed “pit bulls.” They are usurping the authority of the real General Assembly by enacting rules that effectively reverse a long-standing law governing election certification.

If Vice President Kamala Harris defeats Trump, GOP election board members will, for the first time, have an easier path to create chaos and delay after election day, giving Trump a better chance to overturn the will of the voters.

DON HACKNEY, ATLANTA

Election board rightly increases voter transparency

Here we go again. Remember when the Democrats cynically shrieked that the common sense idea of requiring identification to vote would disenfranchise voters (“Jim Crow 2.0″)? The tumult went away after record election turnouts.

In response to state election investigators finding numerous vote-counting errors, the State Election Board has approved another common sense idea: confirm that the sum of votes from all the precincts equals the total votes reported for a county. Again, on cue, the Dems cynically shriek about voter disenfranchisement.

With the increased transparency demanded of Fulton County Elections, I predict they will surprise us all and correctly add up all of the numbers in the November election, and like Stacey Abrams, this latest wave of “voter rights advocates” will quickly and quietly fade away.

PAUL MILLER, ALPHARETTA

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State Election Board members Sara Tindall Ghazal (from left), Janelle King, Executive Director Mike Coan, Chairman John Fervier, Rick Jeffares and Janice Johnston attend a meeting last year in Atlanta. The board has the power to levy fines up to $5,000 per violation of Georgia election laws. (Arvin Temkar/AJC 2024)

Credit: Arvin Temkar/AJC

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The Thanksgiving air travel period is on as passengers made their way through the airport Friday, Nov. 22, 2024. Traveling through Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport during the holidays can be an ordeal. Parking shortages could disrupt your plans and security waits can be long during busy periods, causing bottlenecks. Hartsfield-Jackson is advising travelers to get to the airport at least 2½ hours before their domestic flight and at least 3 hours before their international flight. (John Spink/AJC)

Credit: John Spink