A showdown is brewing between the top election official in Georgia and the State Election Board over more than a dozen new rules and procedures scheduled to be voted on by the board at a meeting on Friday.
A lawyer for the election official, Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger, sent a scathing letter to the State Election Board on Monday, criticizing “the absurdity of the board’s actions” while warning that new rules under consideration are dangerously late in the election process and most likely illegal.
The fight comes as the election board is under increasing pressure from critics already concerned that it has been rewriting the rules of the game in a key swing state to favor former President Donald J. Trump, including potentially disrupting certification of the election if Mr. Trump loses in November. Last month, the board granted local officials new power over the election certification process, a change that opponents say could sow chaos.
The two-page letter from Charlene S. McGowan, the general counsel for Mr. Raffensperger, sets up a choice for the election board before its meeting on Friday: Heed the guidance of the top election official in the state, or ignore the legal advice and pass another package of election rules that include right-wing policy goals such as hand counting of ballots.
“It is far too late in the election process for counties to implement new rules and procedures, and many poll workers have already completed their required training,” Ms. McGowan wrote in the letter, which she said was a response to a request for comment on the proposed rules from the chairman of the board. “If the board believes that rules changes are important for an election, the process should begin much sooner to allow for smooth implementation and training and include the input of election officials.”
A spokesman for the State Election Board did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The letter, which was reviewed by The New York Times, comes amid a contentious relationship between state and county election officials with the board, which recently was taken over by a 3-2 conservative majority.