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ATLANTA – In a significant development, the FBI executed a search warrant to collect hundreds of ballot boxes from election offices in Fulton County, Georgia. This action is part of a criminal investigation into potential “deficiencies or defects” in the 2020 election vote count, in which former President Donald Trump was defeated. The details emerged from an affidavit that was made public on Tuesday.
The affidavit sheds light on the FBI’s recent search in Fulton County, a region that has been at the heart of claims by Trump and his supporters who argue, without evidence, that the 2020 election was fraudulent. This document represents the first official explanation for the FBI’s actions last month.
However, the claims outlined in the affidavit echo long-standing allegations from individuals insisting there was fraud in the 2020 election. These allegations have been consistently debunked by audits, state officials, courts, and even Trump’s own former Attorney General, all of whom have dismissed the notion of widespread fraud altering the election results.
Investigators are focusing on a few particular issues, according to the affidavit. One such issue is Fulton County’s admission that it lacks scanned images for all the ballots counted in both the original tally and the subsequent recount. Additionally, it was confirmed that some ballots were scanned multiple times during the recount process.
The affidavit notes that if these deficiencies stemmed from intentional actions, it could constitute a violation of federal law. This holds true regardless of whether the failure to maintain records or ensure a fair vote count impacted the outcome of any specific election or race.
The affidavit says seizures of the election records was necessary to determine whether election records were destroyed and or the tabulation of votes included materially false votes.” It cites potential violations of a law regarding the preservation and retention of election records, a misdemeanor. It also cites a law that makes it a crime to “knowingly and willfully” deprive residents of a “fair and impartially conducted election process,” which is a felony.
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