ATLANTA (AP) — A federal judge on Monday allowed the Georgia governor's removal of two-thirds of the school board members in a suburban Atlanta school district to move forward, although legal questions remain.

After the DeKalb County school district was placed on probation by an accrediting agency, Gov. Nathan Deal last week signed an order suspending six of the district's nine members and appointed a panel to find replacements. The district and the school board chairman filed suit challenging the constitutionality of the law that allows the governor to remove local school board members.

U.S. District Judge Richard Story's order denied a request by the school district and the board chairman for a preliminary injunction, which would have blocked the board members' removal while the legal challenge played out.