Richmond County elections board seeks dismissal of Myles election challenge

AUGUSTA, Ga. (WRDW/WAGT) – The Richmond County Board of Elections has filed its official response to the complaint Lori Myles filed over the May 19 Augusta mayoral election.

As part of the legal process, the board has asked the court to dismiss the case and has filed its response to the claims.

The announcement came after the board met in executive session during a special called meeting Monday.

Myles is pushing for a recount. Her lawsuit claims 18,353 absentee votes are missing and alleges voter suppression.

Lawsuit details

Lori Myles filed the lawsuit in Richmond County Superior Court challenging the handling of the May 19 election, alleging missing absentee votes and errors tied to how results were reported, according to court records.

In the complaint filed on May 28, Myles alleges election officials mishandled voting information and election materials and claims the election returns were inaccurate.

Among the allegations, the filing claims that absentee-voter records were mishandled and that there were 18,353 missing absentee votes.

“I believe that ‘my votes, and your votes’ were stolen, erased, and strategically ‘voter suppressed,’” Myles said in lawsuit documents.

Defendants in the lawsuit include Richmond County Board of Elections Director Travis Doss, the Augusta Commission, members of Augusta’s elections board and Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger.

Allegations and relief sought

Myles also points to what she describes as polling-place reporting issues, repeatedly questioning why Diamond Lakes is not listed among polling locations and results on Augusta’s election website.

The complaint requests a recount and recanvass and references the pursuit of open-records requests. It also calls for additional verification measures, including rescanning ballots and scrutiny of QR code tabulation, as part of the relief sought.

Myles wrote that she plans to submit a voter-signature petition in support of her challenge.

Results posted on Augusta’s election website for the May 19 contest show Johnson leading with 16,313 votes, or 42.8%, followed by Kendrick with 13,531, or 35.5%, Eric Gaines with 5,442, or 14.3%, and Myles with 2,838, or 7.5%.

What the elections board is now arguing in court

In a combined motion to dismiss and answer filed June 23, the Richmond County Board of Elections asked a judge to dismiss the case “with prejudice,” arguing Myles’ election contest was filed one day past Georgia’s five-day deadline after certification and is therefore time-barred and outside the court’s jurisdiction, according to the filing.

The board said the election results were certified May 22 and the statutory deadline to contest them was May 27, but Myles filed May 28, the motion states.

The board also argued Myles’ request to have 18,353 allegedly missing absentee votes added to her total is not a remedy available under Georgia law, saying courts can order recount-related relief but cannot assign unidentified votes to a candidate.

The filing argues Myles failed to meet election-contest requirements because she did not properly join and serve the other candidates in the race and did not follow the statute requiring expedited “special process” in election challenges, the motion states.

The motion also says Myles’ filing was not verified by affidavit, which the board argues is a mandatory requirement for an election contest petition under Georgia law.

The board asked the court to dismiss Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger as a defendant, arguing he is not a proper party in a local election contest and that official-capacity claims implicate sovereign immunity.

The board also asked for attorney’s fees and costs, arguing the lawsuit lacks substantial justification and noting Myles references filing five prior election-related cases in Richmond County that were dismissed, according to the motion.