Groups sue over 6th District special election

Recent lawsuit asks Fulton County judge to throw out election results

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Photo credit: Dustin Chambers
STILL ON HER HEELS: Before an 18-candidate forum in March, Jon Ossoff walks behind Karen Handel, the candidate who would defeat him in a June 20 runoff, the results of which are now being disputed in a lawsuit.

Just when you thought you’d never have to hear about the 6th District special election ever again, a group of Georgia voters and Colorado-based nonprofit Coalition for Good Governance [http://www.myajc.com/news/stateregional-govtpolitics/lawsuit-seeks-void-6th-district-runoff-over-aging-voting-system/UJG8a3uj8DSNUab01mJBbN/|filed a lawsuit] July 3 asking a Fulton County judge to throw out the results. The complaint, which requests a jury trial, states that “because of the insecurity of Georgia’s voting system and the lack of voter-verifiable paper ballots, the precise outcome ... cannot be known.”

It’s the second time this group of plaintiffs has filed a lawsuit calling into question the state’s voting equipment. Prior to the June 20 election, they unsuccessfully called for paper ballots after a cybersecurity researcher discovered a gaping hole in a server housed at Kennesaw State University’s Center for Election Systems that exposed all of Georgia’s voter registration records to the public and more.

Jennifer McCoy, distinguished university professor of political science at Georgia State University, says the new lawsuit raises important questions about the vulnerability of Georgia’s electronic voting machines and pollbooks, yet presents no evidence about actual irregularities in any of the elections. “Regardless of the legal outcome of this case, it raises issues that should be dealt with politically, in the legislature and secretary of state’s office, to certify Georgia’s aging machines and outdated software and explore the purchase of more modern technology,” she says. “Budgetary implications are the primary reasons, as far as I know, that prevented the state from purchasing an electronic system with a paper receipt for each vote at the outset in 2002.”

But, she adds: “Neither manual nor electronic voting systems guarantee integrity of the vote. Instead, it is the system of controls, audits and certifications, with transparency and participation of the political parties, that provide security and confidence in a voting system.” During a forum hosted by GSU prior to the November 2016 elections, McCoy says, general counsel from both parties in Georgia expressed confidence in the voting system.

While no evidence has been presented that proves manipulation of the vote count or of voter fraud at the polls, McCoy says: “Voters need to feel secure that the voter registration system is open to all and as accurate as possible, and that the method of voting and vote count is secure. After 15 years, it is time for the legislature to consider budgeting to update and modernize Georgia’s voting machines.”






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