The FBI’s investigation of the 2020 presidential election in Fulton County is focused on allegations of double-counted ballots, “pristine” absentee ballots and missing digital ballot images, according to a search warrant affidavit unsealed Tuesday.
The search warrant affidavit was the basis for an FBI raid of Fulton’s elections office last month, when agents seized 656 boxes of ballots from the 2020 presidential election.
The criminal investigation of Fulton revived allegations of wrongdoing in an election that Republican President Donald Trump lost to Democrat Joe Biden by about 12,000 votes.
State election investigations have never found intentional fraud over the last five years, but Fulton has been cited for poor ballot management, disorganized processes and counting errors.
“There were many allegations of electoral impropriety relating to the voting process and ballot counting in Fulton County, Georgia. Some of those allegations have been disproven while some of those allegations have been substantiated, including through admissions by Fulton County,” wrote FBI Special Agent Hugh Evans. “This warrant application is part of an FBI criminal investigation into whether any of the improprieties were intentional acts that violated federal criminal laws.”
The search warrant relies on several Republican witnesses who believe there was fraud. The investigation originated with Kurt Olsen, an attorney who tried to help Trump overturn his loss. Trump appointed Olsen as special government employee to investigate the 2020 election.
The FBI’s 18-page affidavit includes several claims that have been validated by previous investigations, along with other allegations that have never been confirmed.
The State Election Board reprimanded Fulton in 2024 for double-scanning over 3,000 ballots. A recent report produced by conservative election researchers, some of whom were interviewed by the FBI to justify the search warrant, said closer to 4,000 ballots were double-counted.
The allegation of “pristine,” fake, unfolded absentee ballots lacks evidence beyond Republican witnesses who made the allegation.
Georgia election investigators weren’t able to find any fake ballots in the batches identified by Republican vote-counters during an audit of the 2020 election, according to a court filing in 2021.
Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger said Georgia’s elections are safe and secure.
“Instead of wasting time and tax dollars trying to change the past with baseless and repackaged claims, let’s focus our efforts on building a safer, more affordable future for all hardworking Georgians,” Raffensperger said.
The FBI’s investigation could result in criminal charges if intentional wrongdoing is found.
The search warrant cites federal laws that require counties to maintain election records for at least 22 months and prohibit knowingly tabulating fraudulent ballots.