A top official from the secretary of state's office in Georgia shut down murmurs on Monday that legal challenges would successfully hamper Democrats if they try to switch President Joe Biden off the presidential ballot.
Secretary of State Chief Operating Officer Gabriel Sterling said that whoever the Democratic nominee is will be the person on the ballot, despite Georgia voters choosing Biden in a primary in March.
Sterling's remarks came after Biden made the stunning decision Sunday to end his bid for reelection and endorse his running mate, Vice President Kamala Harris.
"So it’s understood, Biden dropping out will not impact Georgia ballots," Sterling posted on X. "As the Democrats haven’t had a convention, there is no 'nominee' to replace."
Sterling, who has served in his role since 2018, was heavily involved in the contentious legal fights that arose after the 2020 election. Georgia, a top battleground state, saw one of the closest races in the country in the last presidential election. Trump lost by 12,000 votes out of about 5 million cast, a result that came after two recounts and after state officials made emergency changes to ease voting laws in the state that year in the name of COVID-19.
Trump and his allies zeroed in on Georgia, alleging there was widespread election fraud in the state and bringing several legal claims of fraud that were all eventually tossed out by judges.
Sterling, for his part, went on a warpath against Trump at the time, calling his claims "fantastical, unreasonable, [and] lacking in any factual reality."
When Biden announced he was stepping down, some Republicans argued that Biden and all the Democrats who fell in line behind Harris effectively disenfranchised the millions of voters who chose Biden in the primaries.
The conservative Heritage Foundation has, however, taken it a step further, warning it will consider bringing legal challenges in certain states that attempt to switch Biden's name out for Harris's on the general election ballot.
Mike Howell, executive director of the Heritage Foundation's Oversight Project, told the Washington Examiner before Biden dropped out that he could see a state such as Georgia being "complicit" and allowing unlawful ballot changes.
“In a state like Georgia, where they’re very weak on dealing with these election integrity issues, I could see them doing whatever is needed to accommodate the success of the campaign,” Howell said.
While election laws vary by state and can be weedy and arcane, Sterling said unequivocally that his state would not interfere with Democrats choosing their replacement candidate. The party is currently set to select its candidate at a virtual convention in August, having dispatched the winner of the primaries held earlier this year.
"Trump/Vance will be on the ballot along with [Chase Oliver] for the Libertarians. Whomever the Democrats nominate will be on as well," Sterling said, adding that the process of choosing candidates is ongoing and that Georgia could have up to seven presidential candidates on the ballot come November.
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Marc Elias, a prominent election lawyer for Democrats, indicated Sunday that any efforts to challenge the Democratic name on the ballot in any state would be frivolous.
“There is no basis for any legal challenge. Period,” Elias said.
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