Parents sue Georgia school district for not ordering masks
Four parents are suing the Cobb County school district on behalf of their children, saying the failure of Georgiaโs second largest school district to require masks means their students cannot safely attend in-person classes because of their disabilities.
Georgia to audit one countyโs signatures on ballot envelopes
ATLANTA โ Georgiaโs secretary of state on Monday announced an audit of signatures on absentee ballot envelopes in one county, but the outcome of the presidential race in the state will not change as a result of the audit. Before submitting an absentee ballot, a voter must sign an oath on an outer envelope. When county election officials receive an absentee ballot, they must compare the signature to the absentee ballot application if one exists and to the signature on file. If the signature does match, the ballot is separated from the envelope to protect the right to ballot secrecy guaranteed by Georgia law. A statistically significant subset of signed absentee ballot envelopes will be audited, his office said.
Georgia's hand tally of presidential race nears end
Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger said he chose the presidential race because of its significance and tight margin. Because of the close results, he said, a full hand recount would be needed to complete the audit. The actual number of rejected ballots was about 350% higher, but that matched the overall increase in absentee ballots, the release says. Two years ago, 454 absentee ballots were rejected out of 284,393. The Associated Press has not declared a winner in the presidential race in Georgia, where Biden led Trump by 0.3 percentage points.
Georgia official says Graham asked him about tossing ballots
Cobb County Election officials handle ballots during an audit, Monday, Nov. 16, 2020, in Marietta, Ga. A hand tally of the nearly 5 million votes cast in the presidential race in Georgia has entered its fourth day Monday. (AP Photo/Mike Stewart)
Georgia official says Graham asked him about tossing ballots
Raffensperger's comments came as election officials across the state were working to complete a hand recount of votes in the presidential race. County election board Chairman Tom Rees said it appears the ballots were cast during in-person early voting but election officials werenโt sure how they were missed. But the county had the paper ballots and caught the problem during the hand tally, he said. County election officials were instructed to complete the count by 11:59 p.m. Wednesday. State election officials have said they wouldn't release any results from the tally until the whole process is complete.
EXPLAINER: Why AP called Georgia for Biden
But his 0.3 percentage point lead over Trump in Georgia was so narrow that the state could not be called โ until now. While there is no mandatory recount law in Georgia, state law provides that option to a trailing candidate if the margin is less than 0.5 percentage points. Therefore, AP declared Biden the winner in Georgia. Gabriel Sterling, who oversaw the implementation of the stateโs new voting system, said the result of the hand audit found Biden leading Trump by a little more than 12,000 votes. Going into the hand tally, Biden led Trump by a margin of about 14,000 votes.
Cobb County DA: No conflict in Ahmaud Arbery case
Thats what happened in Georgia when the Cobb County District Attorneys Office traveled to Glynn County for a case. According to a post on the Cobb County District Attorneys Office Facebook page, in fall 2016, Cobb County prosecutors tried a Cobb County case in Brunswick upon a change-of-venue order issued by the judge in that case. Cobb Countys staff used the Glynn County District Attorney Office for workspace for the duration of that monthslong trial. Staying with transparency, the Cobb County District Attorneys Office also explained that the Special Victims Unit of the Cobb County District Attorneys Office includes a prosecutor who came to the Cobb County District Attorneys Office after working in the Glynn County District Attorneys Office. In unfortunate circumstances, we are sometimes called upon to prosecute people we know professionally, said current Cobb County District Attorney Joyette Holmes.