Justice Department sues Fulton County for 2020 election ballots
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Boxes of election material at the Fulton County Registration and Election warehouse in Atlanta on Nov. 4, 2020. Photo: Courtesty of Elijah Nouvelage/Bloomberg via Getty Images
The Department of Justice is seeking Fulton County's ballots from the 2020 election, according to a federal lawsuit filed Thursday in Atlanta.
Why it matters: The legal move by the DOJ shows the Trump administration still questions whether President Biden won the election five years ago.
- Human error was behind issues surrounding how Fulton County handled the election, according to the AJC, but two recounts confirmed Biden won the state by 11,779 votes and investigations found no evidence of intentional wrongdoing.
The latest: Federal authorities are asking Fulton County's clerk of courts to turn over copies of "all used and void ballots, stubs of all ballots, signature envelopes, and corresponding envelope digital files from the 2020 general election," according to the complaint.
- The DOJ wants the court to declare the county's refusal to provide the requested documents a violation of the Civil Rights Act of 1960 and for the county to provide the documents within five days of a court order.
The big picture: The complaint is in addition to the agency's other lawsuits against Colorado, Massachusetts, Hawaii and Nevada — states that Trump lost in 2020 — for not producing their voter registration lists for that election.
- The administration argues the Civil Rights Act allows Attorney General Pam Bondi to inspect statewide voter registration lists upon demand.
- It also says Congress, through the National Voter Registration Act and the Help America Vote Act, gives the attorney general authority to make sure states have "effective" voter registration lists and maintenance programs.
What they're saying: Harmeet K. Dhillon, assistant attorney general for DOJ's Civil Rights Division, said in a statement that states are required to "preserve and protect their constituents from vote dilution."
- "At this Department of Justice, we will not permit states to jeopardize the integrity and effectiveness of elections by refusing to abide by our federal elections laws," Dhillon said. "If states will not fulfill their duty to protect the integrity of the ballot, we will."
The other side: Fulton County did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Catch up quick: In 2024, Republican members of the State Election Board issued a subpoena requesting Fulton's 2020 ballots and other forms, but the AJC reports the request is still pending.
- The local board then reached out to the DOJ for help, and in October, the Justice Department submitted its own request for "all records in your possession responsive to the recent subpoena issued to your office by the State Election Board," according to the complaint.
- Fulton County responded, saying the 2020 ballots, stubs and absentee ballot envelopes were in possession and under seal of the Fulton County clerk of superior court.
- The attorney general on Nov. 21 sent a letter requesting the documents.
Context: The lawsuit comes weeks after a special prosecutor dropped the charges in President Trump's election-interference case in Fulton County.