CLARKESVILLE — A divided, bickering State Election Board was on full display Thursday as Georgia legislators repeatedly heard about its deep “dysfunction.”
The accusations included the board’s backlog of election investigations, a director who attacked the integrity of the board’s chairman, and a board member whose husband is running for secretary of state.
State representatives were not impressed during a meeting of a House elections study committee at North Georgia Technical College.
“We’ve seen grandstanding, bombastic rhetoric and public disputes that have done little to serve voters and have at times undermined the confidence in the system itself,” said Chairman Tim Fleming, R-Covington.
State Rep. Saira Draper, D-Atlanta, compared the board to immature children.
“I felt like I was at home managing fights between my kids. There has been so much finger pointing and blaming,” said Draper, the only Democrat on the committee. “I have followed the State Election Board for many years and across many different members, and it has never, ever reached this level of dysfunction.”
If the board doesn’t learn to work together instead of fighting among itself, the General Assembly will have to step in during next year’s legislative session, Fleming said.
Credit: Arvin Temkar/AJC
Credit: Arvin Temkar/AJC
The State Election Board has constantly squabbled over the past year.
The board’s right-wing majority passed contentious voting rules that the Georgia Supreme Court recently rejected, called for President Donald Trump’s Department of Justice to help investigate the 2020 election and argued with their Republican chairman, John Fervier.
The board’s new executive director, James Mills, publicly blamed Fervier for its discord. Mills said Fervier excludes the board from discussions with the secretary of state’s office and disregards its majority.
“I’ve never served under a more dysfunctional, dishonest chair,” said Mills, a Republican former state representative and former chairman of the State Board of Pardons and Paroles. “If you have a dysfunctional chairman who’s not talking to the committee and working with them, you can’t get simple changes made.”
Fervier faulted the board for trying to create new rules — which the courts threw out — for hand ballot counts and election inquiries, instead of focusing on allegations of wrongdoing.
There are now 315 completed, but unresolved, election investigations that are awaiting presentation to the board. The board’s role is to hear those cases and decide to seek prosecution, impose a fine, issue a reprimand or dismiss them.
“The past year has been filled with a lot of change and controversy and lawsuits,” said Fervier, who was appointed by Gov. Brian Kemp. “We were unable to hear a lot of cases because we spent a great deal of time on rulemaking.”
Board member Janelle King rejected allegations she has a conflict of interest in criticizing the secretary of state’s office while her husband, Kelvin King, is running for that office.
King said Fervier is the problem by communicating with the secretary of state’s office behind her back.
“We are constantly left out. We are told that you’re not doing something only to find out that you are. The lies that are being told,” King said. “Why is there so much secrecy?”
Fleming, the committee’s chairman, is also running for secretary of state.
Few solutions were forthcoming for the State Election Board’s arguing.
David Worley, a former Democratic Party board member, suggested abolishing the board and allowing the secretary of state’s office to handle election investigations.
King and Mills said the board needs more money and independence to do its work without interference.
The House elections committee plans to make recommendations this fall for changes to Georgia’s voting laws.
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