ATLANTA — Georgia’s top election official will not take the stand as part of a trial over the security of the state’s voting machine.
The 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled Friday afternoon that Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger will not have to testify regarding Georgia’s voting systems or answer questions about the 2021 copying of election software in Coffee County.
Judges Kevin Newsome, Robert Luck and Andrew Brasher ruled that high-ranking officials should not be called to testify about their official actions unless there is a “special need or situation” that calls for it. No such need was established in the case.
“The Plaintiffs have not identified any information that is both essential to their claims and that cannot be gleaned from other witnesses,” the ruling reads. “Although the Plaintiffs point to public statements the Secretary has made about the litigation, the Secretary’s public statements do not in themselves create an extraordinary circumstance that requires his personal testimony.”
A spokesperson for Georgia Secretary of State’s Office told 11Alive Friday afternoon they had no comment on the ruling. The appeals ruling overturned U.S. District Court judge Amy Totenberg's decision to have Raffensperger testify in case.
Attorneys for Raffensperger appealed the lower court's ruling.
The trial, set to begin Tuesday, centers on claims over the security of Georgia’s voting machines.
The lawsuit was filed in 2017 by several individual voters and the Coalition for Good Governance, a group that advocates for election security, against state officials. Attempts to contact attorneys for the group were not returned Friday.
Citing cybersecurity experts and computer scientists, the group alleges the state’s current touchscreen voting machines that print out a paper ballot with a human-readable summary and a scannable QR code have “multiple severe security flaws” that could be exploited by bad actors.
In court documents, the plaintiffs say the 2021 Coffee County breaches exposed further vulnerabilities.
Attorneys for the voters and the Coalition for Good Governance also allege that the Secretary of State’s Office gave contradictory statements to 11Alive and others regarding when the agency began its investigation into the Coffee County breaches.
In court documents and sworn testimony, state election officials maintain the equipment is safe. They say the group has "unfounded fears and selective concerns about election integrity."
State election official Gabe Sterling also testified in October 2022 that Raffensperger and an aide provided the station with incorrect information regarding the Coffee County breach investigation. Sterling previously told 11Alive “supporting evidence” for the breach was found in July 2022.
The voters and Coalition for Good Governance want the state to use hand-marked paper ballots instead of the electronic voting machines.
Totenberg, the federal judge overseeing the trial, has previously said she can’t order the state to implement a new paper ballot system.
However, Totenberg could order policy measures to address certain issues, and she's encouraged both parties to work together to reach a solution, the Associated Press reports.