“County election boards have a clear duty under Georgia law to faithfully report and timely certify their election returns,” added Sophia Lakin, director of the ACLU’s Voting Rights Project. “The State Election Board’s last-minute rules changes inject uncertainty and confusion into certification and threaten the fundamental right to vote.”

One measure, to be voted on Friday, would require hand counting of ballots. Critics say that it would create widespread confusion in a state pivotal to the presidential race.