A quick story, John: After losing an election race last year, a Georgia State Court Judge turned to a loophole in state law that could have erased the result and blocked the winner from taking office. 

We're not making this up. In Georgia, if judges announce they’ll quit at some point before the end of their term, they hand the governor the ability to choose their replacement for the next two years. Even if an election was about to be held for their seat, that race gets canceled and kicked years down the road. Even if an election for their seat has already happened, a judge could still resign after they’ve lost, giving the governor the power to make an appointment that would nullify the result.

Looking to trigger this rule after losing his nonpartisan runoff, conservative Georgia State Court Judge Stephen Yekel told Governor Brian Kemp in a Dec. 6 letter that he intended to resign effective Dec. 30, just one day before his term was set to end. Kemp rejected his resignation letter, thankfully, but that doesn't mean a more cynical governor would do the same in the future.

Opponents of voting rights will take ANY opportunity to silence the will of the people and hold onto their power. We need to fight to close this loophole in Georgia and similar loopholes around the country.

Voter suppression comes in all forms, John, both in Georgia and nationally. Step up and defend our right to vote with $25 or whatever you can today >>

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While Kemp didn’t give in this time, he has used the loophole to postpone or cancel other judicial elections, though state observers say he has never done so to block a winner after an election has already taken place, only before elections.

But that doesn't mean it won't happen in the future, either with him or another governor. In fact, Kemp had a direct hand in the controversial 2020 maneuver that effectively created the loophole in its current form and gave him the authority to cancel judicial elections. 

“You’re creating an opportunity to bypass an election,” Sara Tindall Ghazal, a member of the Georgia Board of Elections, said. “If the judge or the governor doesn’t like the outcome of the election, there’s this opportunity to encourage the incumbent to resign and then fill the seat.” 

Georgia needs stricter legal guidelines now. Our fundamental right to vote needs defending across the country. Our democracy is too important to let these petty dictators, MAGA sycophants, and conspiracy theorists stay in control.

We have to start working now to defend our democracy in next year's elections. Chip in $25 or more right now to join the fight for our rights before it's too late >>

Integrity First Voter Action Project is dedicated to expanding ballot access and increasing voter participation across the country.

Since the Supreme Court gutted key provisions in the Voting Rights Act, extreme politicians have taken advantage to pass harsh laws that restrict access to the ballot box. These restrictions particularly affect disadvantaged communities and people of color. It’s our goal to bring awareness to these laws wherever they may crop up and organize voters to take action to ensure the right to vote is available to everyone in their states and communities.

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