Votebeat is a nonprofit news organization reporting on voting access and election administration across the U.S. Sign up for our free weekly newsletter to get the latest.A government accountability group is accusing the Georgia State Election Board of potentially violating a 2025 legal settlement over its use of private email accounts after an undisclosed Gmail account was inadvertently displayed during a public meeting last month.In a formal demand letter sent Thursday to the Georgia attorney general and the board’s legal counsel, American Oversight called on state officials to explain why the account — gaseb2023@gmail.com — was never disclosed during discovery, and why its records were not produced in response to public records requests.Last year, the board agreed to pay American Oversight $50,000 to settle a lawsuit alleging that members used personal email accounts and messaging apps to conduct official business and evade Georgia’s public records law. The lawsuit identified six email addresses used for board business, including five personal Gmail accounts tied to specific individuals. The email account displayed at the September meeting was not included in the lawsuit.“This raises concerns as to whether the SEB is in compliance with the Agreement, has inappropriately withheld information and records in connection with the lawsuit underlying the Agreement, and is appropriately preserving and disclosing records in compliance with the Georgia Open Records Act (ORA),” wrote Katherine M. Anthony, interim chief counsel for American Oversight.As part of the 2025 settlement, the board adopted mandatory email and messaging guidelines requiring members and staff to use government-issued email addresses for official communications. The guidelines were finalized in November 2025.“We took the State Election Board to court and secured a commitment that its members would use official government email accounts for board business. Nearly a year later, an undisclosed, unofficial account appears on screen at a public meeting,” Chioma Chukwu, executive director of American Oversight, said in a statement.American Oversight has given the Georgia attorney general’s office until Oct. 22 to explain whether records from the account have been preserved and made available under state law.A spokesperson for the attorney general’s office confirmed receipt of the letter. “We’re looking into it,” she wrote in an email. The election board did not respond to an email requesting comment sent Thursday.An undisclosed Gmail accountThe Gmail account appeared on screen during the board’s Sept. 28 board meeting during a live screen share. An attendee took a picture of the display, showing an open browser logged into gaseb2023@gmail.com.Courtesy of American OversightThe photograph, provided to Votebeat, shows an inbox containing at least 486 messages. American Oversight does not know, and the board has not said, which board member or staff member controls the address. It is also not clear what the account is used for.In a phone interview, Salleigh Grubbs — a board member who is also vice chair of the Georgia Republican Party — said she does not use her personal email for board business and was unaware of the account. She said she suspects the email may be used to log in to YouTube. When asked whether board members received formal training on internal email procedures upon joining, Grubbs, who joined the board in December 2025, answered, “Of course not.”Grubbs said she was issued an official laptop and email address, and that legal counsel in the attorney general’s office has been responsive to individual questions about email requirements.Other board members and Executive Director James Mills did not respond to Votebeat’s requests for comment.A board under scrutinyThe questions about the account come amid heightened scrutiny over the SEB’s actions heading into the November election. Earlier this year, federal court filings revealed that federal agents executed a search warrant at Fulton County’s election hub based in part on sworn statements from state election board members. The move drew criticism from local election officials and Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger.More recently, the board voted to request federal intervention in Georgia’s voting systems. But Grubbs and board chair John Fervier told Votebeat that Mills, the board’s executive director, subsequently sent letters to federal officials that went well beyond what the board had authorized.On Friday, the Georgia Association of Voter Registration and Election Officials sent a letter to the board asking it to rescind the request for federal intervention and disputing several claims in Mills’ letters.“Repeated calls telling Georgians their voting system is compromised, days before advance voting, tells them that their vote may not count,” the GAVREO executive board wrote. “Whatever the intent, the only effect now is to suppress turnout on both sides.”Jessica Huseman is Votebeat’s editorial director and is based in Dallas. Contact Jessica at jhuseman@votebeat.org.
