Every vote counts

By Robert B, Covi

Reports from ethics watchdog groups have called attention to state election officials who have refused to certify elections. Since 2020, we’ve seen a right-wing Republican infiltration of local election offices and even some state elections boards which is the MAGA republican plan to walk off with this year’s election. 

Our state is a notorious case in point.  Georgia rises to the top of the cesspool with its five-member state election board packed with an election denier majority and only one Democratic member.

In August, the Georgia state board enacted a rule requiring local election boards to conduct a “reasonable inquiry” into voting issues before certifying the election.  That vague rule is a green light to stall certification while fishing for any excuse to vote against it.  The new rule makes certification mandatory before the election results are verified by the secretary of state’s office. These actions were described as a “mess” by Georgia GOP Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger. 

As if to test the “plan”, eight local election-denying county officials have refused to certify recent local elections.  Their attempt was unsuccessful, but in three counties, including Fulton County, the non-certifiers needed to flip only one vote.  With the new rules passed by the State Election Board, the MAGA members could obstruct the process, cause turmoil among voters and subvert the legitimacy of the election. Certification delayed is certification denied. What a mess indeed! 

An overwhelming Harris/Walz victory at the polls in November would fortify right-minded state attorneys general, secretaries of state, governors, and even courts, to dispense quickly with election denialists’ refusal to certify local results.  Efforts to vote and get out the vote need to be redoubled to potentially build a landslide national vote.

More than ever, every vote counts. 

Robert B. Covi is a resident Bogart