Georgia judge blocks ballot hand counting order

Critics said the rule would have allowed election board members to delay or deny the state's certification of the election results.

In his ruling, Judge McBurney said the "11th-and-one-half-hour implementation of the hand count rule" would diminish public confidence in the outcome.

"This election season is fraught; memories of January 6 [US Capitol attack] have not faded away, regardless of one's view of that date's fame or infamy. Anything that adds uncertainty and disorder to the electoral process disserves the public," he wrote.