A Georgia judge expressed doubt about a contentious new rule from the Georgia State Election Board during a court session on Tuesday. This rule would necessitate that numerous voting precincts across the state conduct hand counts of ballots for the upcoming November election.

The hastily arranged hearing followed a lawsuit filed by the Cobb County election board, located near Atlanta, which is one of several parties trying to prevent the rule from being implemented just weeks prior to the Nov. 5 election.

This newly established rule, adopted on September 20, mandates that three designated individuals in each precinct manually tally the ballots, ensuring that their counts align. A poll manager is also required to validate that these counts correspond with the totals produced by electronic voting machines, and to address any discrepancies.

The rule is part of several last-minute changes made by three Republican members of the five-member state election board, who were commended by former President Donald Trump during a rally in August for their commitment to “honesty, transparency, and victory.”

Georgia’s Republican Secretary of State, Brad Raffensperger, has condemned the hand-count rule along with other recent measures, stating that they create “the opportunity for error, lost or stolen ballots, and fraud.”

Research indicates that manual ballot counting tends to be slower and less precise than using voting machines.

“Why wouldn’t we just pause, especially regarding the hand-count rule, given the apparent strong potential for chaos it could cause?” Judge Robert C. I. McBurney questioned Robert Thomas, the attorney representing the state board.

Proponents of the rule claim it will enhance the integrity of election result certifications, while opponents warn it could lead to disorder and confusion during the ballot counting process.

‘You dumped a problem in their lap’

In defense of the state board, Robert Thomas stated that the Cobb County election board was merely making assumptions about the challenges posed by the new rule, arguing that it is not suitable for a judge to invalidate a rule based solely on speculation.

Judge McBurney countered by asserting that election officials are more knowledgeable than the state election board about the potential issues. The Cobb County board indicated that it would need to train at least 444 precinct workers across its 148 precincts on the new rule in the critical weeks leading up to the election.

Additionally, McBurney pointed out that a broad array of officials and election workers had expressed their opposition to the rule.

Prior to the state board’s decision to enforce the rule, Georgia’s Republican Attorney General Chris Carr warned that it might be illegal. The Georgia Association of Voter Registration and Election Officials, a nonpartisan group comprising over 500 officials and staff from Georgia, stated that the rule could delay election results, burden exhausted employees, and erode public trust in the election process.

Simultaneously, the Cobb County board is contesting five other recent regulations as part of the same lawsuit where it challenges the hand-count rule.

“You have placed a problem in their hands just a few weeks before it needs to be implemented,” McBurney remarked to state election board lawyer Robert Thomas on Tuesday, referring to the operational strain the hand-count rule would impose on county election boards.

“What is the reasoning behind that, and why is it necessary now instead of suggesting, ‘Let’s pilot this and have it ready for the next election?’” McBurney inquired.