Fulton County's handling of the 2020 presidential election has been scrutinized after duplicate ballots and missing ballot images were found. However, the State Election Board (SEB) has decided not to pursue further investigation.
According to a report by the Federalist, even though more than 3,000 ballots were allegedly scanned twice, the State Election Board (SEB) decided not to pursue the issue further. This decision was made even though it is still uncertain how these duplicate scans affected the election results.
Charlene McGowan, General Counsel for the Georgia Secretary of State's office, pointed out the procedural missteps during the recount. “Fulton County used improper procedures during the recount of the presidential contest in 2020,” she stated, underscoring the gravity of the oversight.
Among the most troubling findings were the 380,761 ballot images from Election Day 2020 that could not be accounted for. Janice Johnston, an official involved in the investigation, expressed her concern about these missing records, stating, “There are also 380,761 ballot images from the 2020 Election Day machine count that are ‘not available.’”
Further complicating the issue, allegations of duplicate ballots and missing votes cast a shadow over the election's integrity. Reports suggested that 3,125 were duplicated and 17,852 votes lacked corresponding physical ballots.
The 2020 election was not the first instance of voting issues in Fulton County. In a previous primary election in 2022, 1,326 votes were initially uncounted, an error later corrected by the county officials.
These repeated issues prompted SEB to require Fulton County to adopt new audit procedures and enhanced training for election workers. The intention is to mitigate the risk of future errors in the voting process.
Ed Lindsey, a member of the SEB, advocated for a resolution to avoid further investigation or fines for Fulton County. His motion, which was accepted, has led to some criticism, particularly from those seeking stricter accountability.
Amidst these issues, there were strong calls for the votes to be invalidated or for the paper ballots to be thoroughly investigated. Janice Johnston argued for a rigorous examination of the ballots to verify their authenticity, stressing the potential legal violations involved.
Harrison Floyd, a co-defendant in a related legal case, accused Fulton County of ignoring subpoenas related to the missing ballot images. “This is NOT the first time Fulton County has heard this allegation because we made it in COURT and my attorneys subpoenaed them for the images,” he claimed.
“Fulton County is refusing to comply with our subpoena,” Floyd added, expressing his frustration over the county's non-compliance with legal processes.
The SEB's decision to address electoral issues without further legal action has received mixed reactions, with some believing it could damage public trust in elections.
Legal observer Ann Brumbaugh expressed surprise at the allegations, highlighting the community's concern over the integrity of Fulton County's election process. While the SEB aims to correct past errors, some stakeholders view these measures as inadequate in light of the significant problems uncovered.
