Fulton County Officials Seek Return of Election Records

Officials in Fulton County have submitted a complaint in Georgia state court aimed at retrieving election records that were confiscated by federal agents earlier this year at the Georgia Elections Office.

This complaint was revealed on Wednesday by county authorities in federal court, and it specifically requests the return of election records stored in a Fulton County warehouse.

At a press conference held on Wednesday, county officials reported that agents spent several hours at the warehouse on January 28, departing with an estimated 700 boxes of records, according to Sherry Allen, the county elections director.

Rob Pitts, the Chairman of the Fulton County Commission, mentioned that officials have also asked the court to unseal a search affidavit that was necessary for the federal agents to obtain a search warrant.

Notable figures like Tulsi Gabbard, Director of National Intelligence, and Andrew Bailey, the Deputy Director of the FBI, were present during the raid. A letter from Senate and House intelligence committee leaders, Mark Warner and Jim Himes, stated that Gabbard’s trip to Georgia was brief and approved by the President to help coordinate election security efforts.

Gabbard herself commented that she met with FBI agents at the Atlanta field office and facilitated a brief phone call for the President to appreciate their efforts, emphasizing there were no questions or directives issued during that interaction.

Following news of the Director’s involvement, Warner and Himes requested a debriefing, raising concerns about the implications of Gabbard’s actions regarding the mission of her office.

In December, Fulton County acknowledged that approximately 315,000 early ballots from the 2020 presidential election lacked the required voter signatures for certification. This same county, which encompasses much of Atlanta, notably supported former President Joe Biden in that election, significantly contributing to his overall victory in Georgia.

These ballots were included in Fulton County’s total votes sent to state officials, who subsequently certified the results as official. The FBI has refrained from commenting on the county’s legal challenge, and attempts to reach Fulton County officials for their input were unsuccessful prior to publication.