A group purporting to be a voting rights organization is challenging election integrity measures and instigating chaos within a crucial swing state. Fair Fight, an organization founded by electoral denier Stacey Abrams, has released an advertisement in Atlanta pressuring Governor Brian Kemp (R-GA) to remove three “MAGA extremists” from the Georgia State Election Board – an action that Kemp may not have the legal authority to take.
The ad, which is being aired on CNN, MSNBC, and Fox News, urges voters to call Kemp’s office en masse demanding he remove three Republican board members who have pushed for election integrity measures many Democrats have branded as election interference. The modest $50,000 ad buy was first reported by the New York Times, which was given an exclusive preview of the advertisement.
Fair Fight and other left-wing groups have taken issue with the board’s actions aimed at increasing election integrity, including its requirement that county election officials conduct a “reasonable inquiry” before certifying election results to the state.
National and state Democrats recently filed a lawsuit against the board over its certification rules, arguing they could cause confusion and delay the process. State Representative Nabilah Islam Parkes also lodged an ethics complaint against the board, alleging the new rules were passed to help Trump win. Another complaint accuses the trio of violating open meetings laws.
Kemp referred the ethics complaints to the Georgia attorney general. He also requested that the AG determine if he, as governor, has the power to remove members of the board.
Trump has praised the board’s work, singling out three Republicans – Janice Johnston, Rick Jeffares and Janelle King – as “pit bulls” during a recent campaign rally. The five-member board includes an additional Republican and a Democrat who often collaborate to oppose the trio.
The former president and Kemp have recently reconciled their sometimes tense relationship, with each publicly commending the other. Even if election integrity measures remain in place, by urging Kemp to push back against the board and its work, the ad’s supporters may hope to reopen the freshly healed rift between the two, damaging Trump in the critical swing state.
Kemp’s potent political apparatus is working to mobilize voters in Georgia for his preferred candidates in the state legislature. This effort would likely benefit Trump if the recent rapprochement between the two holds.
The three members who voted for the new rules have defended themselves against criticism, insisting that certification of election results should involve basic checks to verify the results, not just a cursory signature. They maintain that the rules are intended to enhance transparency and boost voter confidence.
Abrams’ Fair Fight has battled other election integrity measures in Georgia. In 2021, a federal judge blocked their attempt to stop an organization that exists to prevent voter fraud from challenging the eligibility of voters whose names appeared on the change-of-address database maintained by the U.S. Postal Service.
Abrams also used a Fair Fight affiliate to file a lawsuit alleging voter suppression in her 2018 loss to Kemp. A judge ruled against her in 2022. At the time of that ruling, Kemp said Abrams “from day one … used this lawsuit to line her pockets, sow distrust in our democratic institutions, and build her own celebrity.
Bradley Jaye is a Capitol Hill Correspondent for Breitbart News. Follow him on Twitter at @BradleyAJaye.