Newsmax to pay $40 million to settle Smartmatic election defamation lawsuit

• Newsmax agreed to pay $40 million to settle a defamation lawsuit filed by Smartmatic, which accused the cable channel of spreading false claims about rigging the 2020 U.S. presidential election.
• The settlement, reached in September 2024, includes a $40 million payment, with $20 million already paid, and the remainder due by July, along with an option to purchase stock in Newsmax.
• Newsmax acknowledged that the court found the claims about Smartmatic manipulating the 2020 election were factually false, and Smartmatic continues litigation against Fox News after its settlement with Dominion Voting Systems.

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Conservative cable channel Newsmax has agreed to pay $40 million to settle a 2020 election defamation lawsuit brought by voting systems software company Smartmatic, according to a new regulatory filing. Smartmatic accused Newsmax of reporting false claims that it helped rig the election for Joe Biden over Donald Trump.

The parties did not reveal details of the settlement when it was reached in September 2024, but the recent filing states that it included a cash payment and an option to purchase stock in Newsmax.

Newsmax said payments totaling $20 million have already been made, with the rest coming before July.

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What has Newsmax said about the settlement?

After the settlement last year, Newsmax said in a statement it “acknowledges that the Court found that ‘allegations regarding whether the [2020 U.S. presidential election] and its results were somehow altered or manipulated by Smartmatic are factually false/untrue.’”

Smartmatic already settled a related defamation lawsuit against One America News for a sum that was not disclosed publicly.

What’s next for Smartmatic?

Smartmatic is still in litigation with Fox News, which settled a separate defamation lawsuit with voting systems provider Dominion Voting Systems for $787 million in 2023.