FBI Investigates Fulton County’s 2020 Election Response
The FBI is looking into how Fulton County handled the 2020 election, prompted by a recently filed search warrant affidavit citing allegations of voting fraud and record-keeping mishaps.
An FBI special agent detailed the investigation’s scope for the first time in a document submitted to federal court by the Justice Department. It outlines concerns about missing ballot images, discrepancies in recount totals, and issues with the chain of custody—all points of suspicion raised by President Trump and his supporters.
Hugh Evans, an agent from the Atlanta field office, indicated in the affidavit that examining the physical ballots is essential to ascertain whether the alleged fraud was accidental or deliberate.
Evans emphasized that the FBI’s inquiry focuses on potential election-related criminal activities in Fulton County—the most populated area in Georgia—regardless of whether these actions altered the outcome of the 2020 election that Trump narrowly lost.
“If these deficiencies were intentional, they would break federal laws, rather than just impacting the integrity of voting records or the accurate counting of votes,” he noted.
One witness, whose identity has been redacted, described as a chemical engineer, stated that his investigation revealed a mismatch between ballot images and the number of votes cast. In response to earlier allegations in 2020, Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger ordered a second manual recount of the ballots.
According to the affidavit, the FBI is also probing reports about duplicate images of absentee ballots that lack the required folds, which are necessary for proper envelope delivery.
Much of the information in the affidavit has been previously examined by the Georgia Board of Elections and through various legal challenges. Trump’s legal team experienced defeats in their cases, with judges frequently determining either a lack of standing or the absence of merit in the claims made.
The FBI’s investigation was initiated after a referral from Kurt Olsen, who was appointed by Trump as the director of election security and integrity. Olsen had also played a role in advancing Trump’s challenges related to the election.
Additionally, Tulsi Gabbard, Trump’s former Director of National Intelligence, is reportedly involved in the investigation. She indicated in a letter to Congress that she was present at the Fulton election facility during the FBI raid on Trump’s request, citing concerns about potential interference in U.S. elections as a national security issue.
