(The Center Square) – A judge said Wednesday that the Fulton County Board of Commissioners will be subjected to a fine of $10,000 a day beginning Friday if it doesn’t comply with a court order to seat two Republican members on its election board.
Senior Fulton County Judge David Emerson issued the ruling a week after the board voted 2-2 not to appoint Julie Adams and Jason Frazier. Three other commission members were absent.
The Fulton County Republican Party sued and Emerson held a hearing Wednesday.
Emerson said he was not holding the commissioners in criminal contempt; rather, civil contempt.
“The court does find that the respondent Board of Commissioners has been stubbornly litigious and acted in bad faith in its conduct prior to this litigation by its failure to comply with clear local legislation which forced the plaintiff to file this action,” Emerson said.
He also awarded Fulton County Republicans attorneys’ fees.
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A copy of the ruling was released by Fair Fight Action, a group founded by former Georgia gubernatorial candidate Stacey Abrams. The group said Adams and Frazier were involved in the “Stop the Steal” movement after the 2000 election.
“It’s good to see courts not bowing to the Republican Party’s authoritarian thirst,” said Fair Fight CEO Lauren Groh-Wargo. “Let’s be clear: the GOP is trying to criminalize democracy itself, demanding elected officials be held in criminal contempt and face jail time for doing their jobs. The elected commissioners exercised their discretion to reject election board nominees who have a well-documented history of undermining and obstructing elections.”