Governor of Georgia Brian Kemp (R) asked his state’s attorney general on Monday for “guidance” on whether he has the authority to remove members of the state election board amid protests over changes to the way Georgia conducts elections ahead of the 2024 election.

The Atlanta Journal-Constitution Greg Bluestein reported Monday that “Kemp’s office is asking the attorney general for advice on whether he has the authority to fire members of the state election board. Voter rights groups, Democrats and even some Republicans have raised alarms about the right-wing majority’s recent votes.”

Bluestein shared a statement from Kemp’s office that said, “This office has received letters from Senator Nabilah Islam Parkes and others alleging ethics violations by members of the State Elections Board. Due to uncertainty as to whether this office has the authority to respond to these complaints under Code Section 45-10-4, we have sought advice from the Attorney General regarding the application of the law to the letters. We will respond upon receipt of that advice and further evaluation of the letters.”

The state election committee in question is now dominated by a pro-Trump bloc of three people who have made changes to the committee, including the removal of the Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger (R) from the Chair of the Board of Directors.

Democratic State Senator. Nabilah Islam-Parkes accuses the Trump-affiliated board members of violating the state’s ethics rules at their meetings.

“Three board members violated the Open Meetings Act and the state code of ethics,” Islam-Parkes told local media, adding: “They didn’t send out a public notice. They were warned by their own general counsel. They had it anyway.”

Former AJC reporter Jay Bookman published an opinion piece last week detailing some of the changes the three-member majority on the panel has made so far. “Thanks to legislation passed by Trump’s allies in the state legislature, Raffensperger was removed from the Electoral College. Other members were removed as well, ultimately handing control of the panel to a three-member MAGA majority that is committed not to free and fair elections, but to elections Trump can win. Trump himself celebrated those three members by name at a recent rally in Georgia as his ‘pit bulls’ for victory,” Bookman wrote, later adding:

They are passing a series of last-minute, unnecessary, unrealistic and, in some cases, illegal rule changes to the election process. This was despite clear warnings from local election officials that they were “dooming 159 counties.” According to the Georgia Association of Voter Registration and Election Officials, these changes will “create unnecessary confusion for both the public and the dedicated poll workers and election officials who are critical to a smooth and efficient election process.”

If these warnings prove to be justified, and if county election officials are indeed doomed by rules they cannot realistically follow, then Trump would have the excuse he needs to challenge the election results and delay or stop the certification.

Trump challenged the 2020 election results in Georgia and famously pressured Raffensperger to “find” him enough votes to win the state. Kemp, Raffensperger and other Republican elected officials in the state joined forces to reject Trump’s claims of voter fraud in 2020, leading to Trump publicly attacking Kemp. Trump and his allies were indicted in Fulton County for their alleged efforts to overturn the election results in Georgia and are awaiting trial.

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