Georgia Judge Says New Election Rules Are ‘Illegal, Unconstitutional and Void’

New voting rules in Georgia requiring a hand-count of ballots have been stopped in a Tolkien-esque manner, with a judge telling the State Election Board, “You shall not pass!”

Robert McBurney
Fulton County Superior Court Judge Robert McBurney looks through paperwork. Brynn Anderson/AP

Georgia activists spent the summer filing lawsuits and — with the help of a State Election Board aligned with their priorities — passing rules to reshape the state’s election processes. A local court has now halted a key part of those efforts.

On Wednesday, Fulton County Judge Thomas Cox Jr. ruled seven recently passed state election rules were “illegal, unconstitutional and void.”

Chief among them was a follow-up decision on a hand-count rule that had some local election officials worried about having adequate manpower come Election Day.