A federal judge in Georgia on Thursday threw out a Republican Party request to change the rules for absentee ballots in the battleground state ahead of twin Senate runoff races in January.
The lawsuit, brought by the Twelfth Congressional District Republican Committee, sought to eliminate absentee ballot drop boxes and bar local election officials from opening any ballot envelope before Election Day.
The suit also wanted to nullify guidance from Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger’s office on how officials should verify signatures on absentee ballots.
The Republican committee claimed that election officials had failed to inspect signatures on absentee ballots properly and that the use of ballot drop boxes made conditions ripe for ballot harvesting.
Oral arguments began in Augusta around 10 a.m., but by 11:30 a.m., Chief District Judge Randal Hall had dismissed the case.
“We are not on the eve of an election, we are, as it relates to this particular election, closing in on halftime,” he said. Thursday’s lawsuit is the latest legal complaint President Trump and his allies have presented to try and prove widespread fraud took place in the Nov. 3 general election.
President-elect Joe Biden turned Georgia, once a Republican stronghold, blue, and the Democrats are hoping to continue the trend on Jan. 5, when challengers Jon Ossoff and Raphael Warnock face off against Republican Sens. David Perdue and Kelly Loeffler.
The winners of the high-stakes contests will determine which party takes control of the upper chamber of Congress in 2021.
