Republican election official in crucial Georgia appeals order saying she must certify results

ATLANTA — A Republican official in the crucial presidential battleground of Georgia is appealing a judge’s order that she and other election leaders in the state’s most populous county must vote to certify results by the deadline set in law.

Julie Adams - a member of the election board in Fulton County, which includes most of Atlanta and is a Democratic stronghold - had filed a lawsuit seeking a declaration that her duties as an election board member were discretionary and that she is entitled to “full access” to “election materials.”

Fulton County Superior Court Judge Robert McBurney ruled this month that “no election superintendent (or member of a board of elections and registration) may refuse to certify or abstain from certifying election results under any circumstance.”

Adams filed a notice of appeal Wednesday to the Georgia Court of Appeals over the part of McBurney’s order that says she “is required to vote in favor of certifying the election results by the deadline,” according to the filing. She also disputes McBurney’s assertion that the appropriate venue for her to voice concerns is an election challenge in the courts.

Georgia law says county election superintendents - generally multimember boards - shall certify election results by 5 p.m. on the Monday after an election, or the Tuesday after if Monday is a holiday, as it is this year. That puts this year’s general election deadline at Nov. 12.

Certification, an administrative task that involves certifying the number of votes, has become a political battleground since then-President Donald Trump tried to overturn his loss to Democrat Joe Biden in the 2020 general election. Republicans in several swing states, including Adams, refused to certify results earlier this year, and some have sued to keep from being forced to sign off on election results.

Democrats and some voting rights groups have worried that Trump’s allies could refuse to certify election results if he loses to Democratic Vice President Kamala Harris in next month’s presidential election.

McBurney wrote in his order that nothing in Georgia law allows county election officials to determine that fraud has occurred or what should be done about it. Any concerns they have should be noted and shared with appropriate authorities for criminal prosecution or as the basis to challenge an election in court, but they cannot be used as justification not to certify, he wrote.

Adams’ notice of appeal says McBurney’s suggestion that county officials can address their concerns through election challenges in court is “improper and insufficient” for her “if she finds fraud and abuse.”