Judge lets DOJ keep Fulton County’s 2020 election ballots


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A federal judge has blocked Fulton County, Georgia, from getting back more than 600 boxes of 2020 election ballots seized by the FBI.

U.S. District Judge J.P. Boulee ruled the county failed to meet the high legal bar required to force the return of the records. But the judge didn’t spare the federal government, calling the FBI’s search warrant paperwork “defective” and “troubling.”

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The DOJ investigation

The ruling allows the Justice Department to keep the materials as it investigates alleged “irregularities” in the county’s 2020 election. This comes despite Georgia verifying the 2020 results three separate times, including a manual hand recount, with every tally confirming Joe Biden’s victory.

Federal authorities say they are probing possible violations of election laws, including rules on retaining records and submitting fraudulent ballots. However, a government lawyer admitted in court that an actual indictment “remains to be seen.”

The next battleground

Fulton County leaders say they strongly disagree with the decision and are weighing their next legal steps. Their immediate focus now shifts to a separate fight. The Justice Department recently subpoenaed the names and contact information of thousands of local 2020 election workers and volunteers. Fulton County has filed a motion to throw that demand out, claiming it is nothing more than political harassment.

This legal clash feeds into a much wider push. The Trump administration is currently using federal law enforcement to target other key battlegrounds, recently demanding 2020 election files from Maricopa County, Arizona, and 2024 ballots from Wayne County, Michigan.


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Why this story matters

A federal court ruling keeps more than 600 boxes of Fulton County's 2020 election ballots in federal custody, and a separate subpoena seeks the personal contact information of thousands of local election workers and volunteers.

Election workers' data at risk

A DOJ subpoena demands the names and contact information of thousands of Fulton County 2020 election workers and volunteers, though the county has filed a motion to block it, calling it political harassment.

Ballots remain in federal hands

A judge ruled Fulton County did not meet the legal bar to reclaim its 2020 election records, which the Justice Department retains as part of an ongoing investigation with no indictment yet filed.

Broader records demands expand

Federal authorities have also demanded 2020 election files from Maricopa County, Arizona and 2024 ballots from Wayne County, Michigan, according to the article.

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Certified balanced reporting

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