State Election Board chair dismisses calls for Fulton County takeover

Fervier pushed back on the political pressure.

“I am a big believer in toning down things,” he said.

For Fervier, it’s simple. The election occurred more than five years ago. The county’s election operations have improved, and even though there were errors, no evidence of wrongdoing has materialized. He said there isn’t a justification for a takeover.

“I’ve yet to see anything that would rise to the level of a crime or malfeasance or anything like that,” he said. “It’s just a lot of mistakes that were made. But, you know, 2020 is over with.”

Under a 2021 voting law, the state board could replace a county’s election board after a performance review, audit or investigation. The board could give a temporary superintendent full authority over vote counting, polling places, voter registration challenges and staffing.

The State Election Board rejected a takeover in 2023 of Georgia’s most populous county after Fulton made significant corrections to election operations during a performance review.

“If there was no reason to do it in 2023, why would you even consider it now, when Fulton County has obviously changed the way they do business and had some really, really good, clean elections?” Fervier said.

Although Fervier wants to move on from 2020, the board’s majority still has more questions.

The right-wing majority’s dogged effort to scrutinize the county’s 2020 conduct has continued. The state board has issued multiple subpoenas for 2020 records and called for the U.S. Justice Department to further examine Fulton County, a bastion of Democratic voters.

Trump has even found allies on the board, praising three members of the board as “pit bulls” at a 2024 campaign rally. One of the three was Janice Johnston, who was later found to have violated the board’s code of conduct while at the event.

“I do worry that there’s a lot of noise out there, a lot of political noise that may influence things with this board,” Fervier said. “I’m concerned about that.”

Meanwhile, Fervier voiced his support for the state’s touchscreen voting system and pushed back against threats to fellow board members and poll workers.

“These poll workers are mostly elderly people that work 12-hour shifts for very little pay, and they’re just out there trying to do the right thing,” Fervier said. “And when you have one of these individuals who threaten them or try and intimidate them, I mean, that’s just wrong and uncalled for.”