The Republican-controlled Georgia State Election Board this week pushed an amendment to an election rule that would grant officials greater power to dispute election results — and election law experts are sounding the alarm. Via Salon:

Given initial approval in a 3-1 vote Tuesday, the proposed amendment would mandate that local election officials count ballots cast at the precinct on election night and investigate any discrepancies between the sum and vote total tallies before certifying the election, The Georgia Recorder reports. The rule would also entitle election board members to examine all election records prior to a voter certification vote should there be a discrepancy in the voting data.

The proposal, according to the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, follows recent refusals from Republican election board members to vote to certify election results despite there being no problems or doubts about the outcome. Should it be finalized next month, the proposed amendment could be in place for the November general election.

Uzoma Nkwonta, a partner at Elias Law Group who has litigated pre- and post-election disputes involving state and federal election law, called the proposal "deeply troubling."

"It would allow local election board members to subvert the certification process under the guise of meaningless document review, creating new opportunities for right-wing election vigilantes to undermine election results without justification," Nkwonta told Salon in a statement.