Georgia inches toward possible takeover of Fulton elections

ATLANTA (AP) — Georgia’s State Election Board inched forward Wednesday in a process set in motion by Republican lawmakers using a controversial provision of the state’s sweeping new election law that could ultimately lead to a takeover of elections in the state’s most populous county.

Fulton County, a Democratic bastion that includes most of the city of Atlanta, has long been a target of Republicans who complain of sloppiness and say they want to ensure state laws are being followed. Former President Donald Trump fixated on Fulton after the November general election, claiming without evidence that fraud in the county contributed to his narrow loss in the state.

Democrats and voting rights activists have said the takeover provision in the new law invites political interference in local elections and could suppress turnout.

“We’ll have to wait and see how it plays out, but it does feed the Democrats’ concerns that Republicans are going to interfere with the actions of the board which is in charge of elections in the county which gave Democrats their biggest total margin of votes,” University of Georgia political science professor Charles Bullock said.

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