UPDATED: Order granting MAGA access to Georgia elections hub rescinded

Update 3:20pm ET: The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports that the judge has rescinded the order.

“A judge has rescinded an order that would have allowed State Election Board members and Republican observers into a building where unofficial results will be compiled,” the paper reported. “Georgia election officials say the court order Tuesday was flawed because it was based on misrepresentations.  Votes are counted by counties and then reported to the state, and no tabulation takes place in the state’s ’emergency operations center,’ also known as the ‘bunker.'”

A judge has granted poll watchers and Georgia’s MAGA-controlled State Election Board access to the secretary of state’s election emergency operations center Tuesday, the night of the primary elections. 

Rightwing extremists on the SEB and MAGA poll watchers have stirred chaos at ballot counting centers in past elections, and have filed frivolous and erroneous complaints of voter fraud. Those nuisance and false-flag complaints have been used to justify the FBI’s raid on Fulton County’s ballot warehouse earlier this year, as part of President Donald Trump’s agenda to convince the public the 2020 presidential election was rigged. 

Meanwhile, voting rights advocates have warned that expansive access to ballot counting and reporting could invite wanton partisan interference and undermine public confidence in the election process.

On May 18, three Republican candidates in Georgia’s primaries sued Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger (R) – who’s running for governor – so that Republican officials and election observers could have greater access to the secretary’s election night reporting hub. 

Among those who sued were state Sen. Greg Dolezal (R), a candidate in the lieutenant governor’s race, and Chris Mora (R), who’s running for a congressional district. In their complaint, they argued that Raffensperger intended to exclude poll watchers and members of the State Election Board from observing ballot counting, reporting and processing on election night.

According to the Georgia Recorder, SEB member Salleigh Grubbs said it was a “huge conflict of interest” for Raffensperger to oversee the election given that he’s running for office. Current Gov. Brian Kemp (R) was also secretary of state for Georgia during the gubernatorial race that he successfully ran in.

The judge’s order granting access said that Georgia law allows poll watchers “to observe ‘the conduct of the election and the counting and recording of votes’ at tabulation centers and related locations, including the Secretary of State’s central aggregation and reporting processes.” 

However, Raffensperger disputed that he’s done anything to weaken transparency around the election and reminded the public that no actual ballot counting takes place at this office’s election reporting headquarters. 

“If you’re concerned with the integrity of the election, you should visit one or several of the 149 county tabulation centers today, instead of trying to confuse voters,” said Raffensperger at a press conference Tuesday.