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How Georgia Republicans canceled an election to get what they wanted

On Tuesday, there was supposed to be an election in Georgia to fill the seat of a retiring state Supreme Court Justice. But that election never happened because -- wait for it -- the state Supreme Court sided with Georgia Republicans, led by Gov, Brian Kemp, and allowed the election to be canceled and for Kemp to appoint a replacement to the bench who can serve for two more years.

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Analysis by Chris Cillizza
, CNN Editor-at-large
CNN — On Tuesday, there was supposed to be an election in Georgia to fill the seat of a retiring state Supreme Court Justice. But that election never happened because -- wait for it -- the state Supreme Court sided with Georgia Republicans, led by Gov, Brian Kemp, and allowed the election to be canceled and for Kemp to appoint a replacement to the bench who can serve for two more years.

Democracy in action! For more on how this all came about -- and what it means for Georgia (and the country) going forward, I talked to the Atlanta Journal Constitution's Greg Bluestein. Our conversation, conducted via email and lightly edited for flow, is below.

Cillizza: There was supposed to be a special election on Tuesday to fill a state Supreme Court opening. Why wasn't there?

Bluestein: Short answer: The Georgia Supreme Court ruled there's no need for an election for the seat because Gov. Brian Kemp gets to make the appointment instead. But the long answer is more complicated.

It started when Justice Keith Blackwell, a conservative known as an incisive inquisitor, announced in February that he was stepping down. But the 44-year-old offered an unusual caveat -- he wouldn't exit until November 18, months after the May 19 election for the seat was to be held.

But the issue really came to a head in February, when two former elected officials who sought to run for the seat -- a Democratic ex-congressman and a Republican former state legislator -- were barred from submitting paperwork to qualify for the seat.

That led to a lawsuit asserting that Blackwell's "mere declaration of an intent to resign" shouldn't be grounds for canceling the election for his seat.

State election officials countered that an election is unnecessary because Kemp has the right to appoint Blackwell's successor to fill a vacancy in the court -- even if the seat won't actually be vacant until after the scheduled vote.

And the state Supreme Court's 6-2 decision said even though Blackwell's seat is not vacant at the present time, his resignation became irrevocable when it was accepted by Kemp. State law, the ruling found, requires the opening to be filled "not by election but rather by gubernatorial appointment."

Cilllizza: Both the former lawmakers -- one Democrat, one Republican -- who were running for the seat sued to force the election. Did the issue not break down along party lines?

Bluestein: There was bipartisan pushback at the decision.

One of the prospective candidates, John Barrow, was a Democratic US House member who unsuccessfully ran for secretary of state in 2018. Another is Beth Beskin, a former Republican state legislator who demanded that the court should let Georgians vote for who they want on the state's top bench.

And several prominent organizations, including the Georgia chapter of the NAACP and the Fair Fight voting rights group founded by Stacey Abrams, filed a friend-of-the-court briefing supporting the challenge.

Cillizza: How much attention did all of this get in the state? Do voters care?

Bluestein: The Atlanta Journal-Constitution devoted the case plenty of coverage, as did the city's legal newspaper, the Daily Report, but it was hard to tell how much it resonated with voters. Down-ballot races for state Supreme Court are low-profile affairs, and most of the seats defended by incumbents go uncontested.

Plus, this legal battle was overshadowed first by the race for president and later by the coronavirus pandemic, which triggered delays across Georgia's justice system.

But legal and political circles were watching every twist and turn. Barrow didn't hold back as the case made its way up the ladder, accusing justices of "slow-walking" the decision and castigating several for not recusing themselves from the case.

Cillizza: This seems to set a dangerous precedent. Can't retiring judges and the governor game the system to avoid elections and keep their preferred party in power?

Bluestein: That's exactly what critics fear. Instead of resigning immediately, other justices could follow Blackwell's lead and submit post-dated resignations that let them stay in office longer while allowing the governor to appoint his or her successor.

They also worry that the decision could pave the way for a judge to set aside the election of anyone else to succeed him -- even after the election has already happened -- by simply resigning before the successor takes office.

Barrow raised that possibility in a scathing response that said judges should "not manipulate the law the way Brian Kemp and Justice Blackwell have manipulated this election."

"We'll continue to see these justices blaming the voters for their bad decisions -- until we replace them," said Barrow.

Cillizza: Finish this sentence: "In canceling the elections, Georgia Republicans __________." Now, explain.

Bluestein: " ... are making sure another conservative sits on Georgia's highest court."

Georgia has not held a contested race for an open Supreme Court seat in decades, so who knows what would have happened if Beskin or Barrow would have been permitted to run.

But the decision to cancel the election, barring a federal judge's intervention, ensures that Kemp will get to appoint Blackwell's successor on the nine-justice bench -- and it's safe to assume the selection will continue the court's conservative tilt.

Kemp's predecessor, Republican Nathan Deal, earned the rare distinction of appointing a majority of justices on the state's highest court over eight years. And after filling another open seat on the bench in March, Kemp will soon get a new chance to make his mark on the bench.

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