In a move that has raised eyebrows, Rep. Joaquin Castro from Texas has expressed concern over Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard’s unexpected presence at an FBI search in Fulton County, Georgia. Castro described Gabbard’s involvement as “extremely unusual” and is pushing for a thorough congressional investigation into the matter.

The situation came to light when Reuters photographer Elijah Nouvelage captured images of Gabbard on a phone conversation beside a car loaded with boxes. This unusual scene has prompted questions about the DNI’s role in domestic operations of this nature.

During a recent interview with CNN, Castro, who serves on the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence, emphasized the need for immediate oversight. “It’s extremely unusual that the DNI would be present for this type of domestic operation,” Castro remarked. He insisted that the intelligence committee should promptly investigate and summon Gabbard to clarify her involvement in the incident.

The FBI’s search in Fulton County was part of an investigation into voting records from the 2020 election. The county has been a focal point due to former President Trump’s baseless claims of election fraud. These claims have led to a broader investigation by Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis, resulting in charges against Trump and 18 others for attempting to overturn the election results.

The FBI was investigating 2020 voting records at the Fulton County elections office. The county is the center of President Trump’s false claims of election fraud, which resulted in the Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis investigating and indicting the president and 18 others on charges tied to attempts to overturn the 2020 election. 

After Willis was disqualified from the case due to her relationship with a top prosecutor, the case was dropped in 2025. 

“Donald Trump has been fixated with this idea that votes were stolen from him in 2020 in the state of Georgia, and he won’t let that go,” Castro said. “And now he’s sent out the FBI and other agents in his government to try to prove something that he imagined happened six years ago.”

An official told NewsNation that Gabbard “has a pivotal role in election security and protecting the integrity of our elections against interference, including operations targeting voting systems, databases, and election infrastructure. She has and will continue to take action on President Trump’s directive to secure our elections and work with our interagency partners to do so.”

Castro is the latest Democrat to express concerns over the FBI search. 

Sen. Mark Warner (D-Va.) shared the Reuters image of Gabbard in a post on the social platform X on Wednesday with the caption: “Why is Tulsi Gabbard at an FBI raid on an election office in Fulton County?”

Warner, the vice chair of the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence, called Gabbard’s presence at the search “a serious breach of trust” in a follow-up post, noting the director was required to notify Congress of “relevant national security concerns.”