Georgia's Fulton County to file motion after FBI seizes 2020 election ballots
Fulton County plans to file a motion challenging what local leaders call an unprecedented and improper seizure of 2020 election records, following an FBI search of the county's elections office last week.
Fulton County Commissioner Marvin Arrington Jr. announced the legal action Monday in response to a federal search warrant executed Jan. 28 at the Fulton County Elections Hub and Operations Center in Union City. FBI agents seized hundreds of boxes of ballots, voter rolls, ballot images, and other election records from the 2020 presidential election.
"I have asked the county attorney to take any and all steps available to fight this criminal search warrant," Arrington said in a statement. "The search warrant, I believe, is not proper."
Arrington, the only practicing attorney on the Fulton County Commission, said the county intends to challenge both the scope of the warrant and how it was carried out. He said the FBI was authorized under a separate court order to copy election records, but instead took physical custody of original ballots, including in-person, absentee, and provisional ballots, along with voter rolls.
"They got copies of our voter rolls and all the original ballots," Arrington said. "Now we cannot verify that we've received everything back because there was no chain-of-custody inventory taken at the time the records were seized."
Arrington said the county wants the records to remain in Georgia under seal, to seek forensic accounting of the materials taken, and to protect sensitive voter information.
Fulton County leaders have criticized the federal action while acknowledging they complied with the warrant as executed. County attorneys are expected to file the motion in federal court in the Northern District of Georgia at the Russell Federal Building.
The FBI executed the search warrant as part of an investigation tied to the 2020 election. The warrant sought all physical ballots from the election, along with ballot images, voter rolls and tapes from vote-tabulating machines.
It remains unclear why federal authorities want the records. The search warrant references potential violations of two federal laws — one involving voter intimidation and election interference, and another requiring election officials to retain federal election records for 22 months. The warrant was signed by U.S. Magistrate Judge Catherine Salinas.
The FBI has confirmed it carried out a "court-authorized law enforcement action," but has not provided additional details, citing an ongoing investigation.
The search drew national attention and sharp criticism from Democratic leaders, who questioned why federal officials are revisiting the 2020 election, which has already been audited and recounted. President Trump has continued to claim, without evidence, that the election was rigged and has vowed to investigate the results since returning to office.
Last month, the Justice Department also filed a civil motion seeking access to Fulton County's 2020 ballots and voting records. The county clerk of courts has asked a judge to dismiss that case, arguing the records are sealed under state law and that the federal government has not provided a legitimate reason to obtain them.
