Georgia judge throws out GOP request to limit ballot drop box hours

A Fulton County judge on Thursday rejected a Republican-led push to close off absentee ballot drop boxes after normal business hours.

The lawsuit from the Republican National Committee and the Georgia Republican Party argued that drop boxes should be limited to the same hours as county election offices in the lead-up to the Jan. 5 Senate runoffs in Georgia.

But Superior Court Judge Kimberly Esmond Adams's ruling would allow drop boxes to continue to be used 24 hours a day under video surveillance until polls close for the runoff elections.

Earlier this year, an attorney for the secretary of state's office said drop boxes were allowed to remain open at all hours under a newly approved State Election Board.

Leah Zammit, an attorney for the state Republican Party, said the case was sought to restore public confidence in Georgia's election process.

"The eyes of the nation are on Georgia, closely watching this process," Zammit told the Atlanta Journal Constitution. "This case is absolutely not about the expansion or dilution of voter rights. ... This case and this motion is about ensuring that individual counties, 159 within the state of Georgia, do not themselves alter the election rules."

The Georgia runoff elections for incumbent Sens. Kelly Loeffler and David Perdue and their Democratic challengers, Raphael Warnock and Jon Ossoff, are set to determine which party will control the Senate.

If Republicans lose both contests, the chamber would be split 50-50, with Democrats and the two independents who caucus with them having the advantage of a tie breaker in Vice President-elect Kamala Harris. Democrats will retain control of the House next term, but by a slimmer margin.