ATLANTA — U.S. District Judge Eleanor Ross has recused herself from overseeing a case involving the United States government and Georgia Sec. of State Brad Raffensperger.
The U.S. government had sued Raffensperger in January over voting information from the 2020 presidential election.
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In May, it came to light that a federal judge was disciplined for inappropriate conduct in chambers and Ross was later revealed as the judge in question. She was made to send apologies to the former staff from her office that had reported the behavior.
The investigation by the 11th Circuit court system found that in addition to having a sexual affair in her chambers, Ross had also attended a political campaign event for Fulton County District Attorney Fani T. Willis.
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Following that revelation, some Georgia lawmakers filed articles of impeachment against Ross and the U.S. Department of Justice filed motions to have Ross recuse herself due to the Willis event and other misconduct investigated by federal judges.
On Monday evening, Ross filed an order recusing herself.
The order reads in part that while an objective inquiry into the merits of the request for the recusal is not based on partisanship, “the Court finds that recusal is appropriate based on the unique facts of this case.”
Ross said that as a result of “perceived support of Willis’ position on election integrity could cause an objective observer to significantly doubt” her impartiality in the case, so she was recusing herself “out of an abundance of caution for the potential perception of bias.”
A new judge has already been assigned to the case.
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