Georgia GOP official 'seething' over new questions from 'election deniers': report

Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger's deputy is furious over the latest efforts by election deniers to question Donald Trump's 2020 loss in the state.

Two of the four members of the state election board voted to launch a formal investigation into Raffensperger's actions during the 2020 election, but the board fell one vote short of the majority needed to open the probe, and deputy secretary of state Jordan Fuchs was left "seething" by the effort, reported the Atlanta Journal-Constitution.

“The election wasn’t stolen and our office is surprised to see particular members of the State Election Board laying the foundation to discredit the next election,” Fuchs told the newspaper. “Once again, we don’t cater to election deniers and we will continue to focus on a smooth, secure and accurate 2024 election. We urge others to do the same.”

The two Republicans who voted for the probe were Janice Johnston, who was appointed by the state GOP, and Ed Lindsey, a former state legislator appointed by the Georgia House.

Johnston has been a frequent critic of Raffensperger and she associates with election conspiracists, but Lindsay is a more mainstream Republican.

“Today’s discussion was not on the merits of any particular claim against the secretary of state or the allegations about the 2020 election but simply whether the State Election Board has jurisdiction to hear any complaints on any subject against his office,” Lindsay said. “The vote today now sends this jurisdictional question to the General Assembly.”

The AJC noted that three vote counts confirmed that President Joe Biden won the election over Trump by about 12,000 votes in the state, and multiple investigations have debunked allegations of widespread voter fraud.

Trump and 18 others have been charged in Fulton County for their efforts to overturn his election loss in the state, and four of the co-defendants have already pleaded guilty.