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By Dan Gooding and Gabe Whisnant
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Georgia’s Fulton County went to federal court Wednesday seeking the return of ballots and other 2020 election records seized by the FBI from a warehouse near Atlanta last week.
The county also asked a judge to unseal a sworn law enforcement statement used to obtain the search warrant, though the filing itself remains under seal, county Chairman Robb Pitts said.
The FBI declined to comment when contacted by Newsweek.
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Why It Matters
The January 28 search targeted records at the county’s main election facility and has drawn criticism from Democrats who say federal law enforcement is being used to pursue President Donald Trump’s political opponents. Trump and his allies have repeatedly focused on the heavily Democratic county since he narrowly lost Georgia in the 2020 election, claiming without evidence that voter fraud there cost him the state.
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What To Know
The complaint against the federal government was not immediately available on Wednesday because it was sealed, with Pitts saying the case was not just about Fulton County but about elections across the country.
The county had overseen around 17 elections since 2020 without any issues, Pitts said. At a Fulton County Commission meeting on Wednesday, officials said the elections department worked hard to ensure elections were secure and that workers were committed to a peaceful transition of power.
Trump has repeatedly claimed that he won Fulton County in 2020, despite Democrat Joe Biden beating him by a wide margin. Multiple investigations have failed to find evidence to back his claims, with Trump investigated for seeking to overturn election results before his return to office in 2025.
When Were Fulton County Offices Raided by FBI Agents?
Around 700 boxes of ballots and other documents related to the 2020 election were seized by federal agents in Fulton County last week, as part of an investigation into alleged voter fraud that year, led by Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard.
Andrew Bailey, the FBI's co-deputy director, and Gabbard were seen on-site during the raid, prompting concerns about the latter's involvement in the case. Democrats in Congress pointed out that the operation was related to law enforcement, not national intelligence.
In response, Gabbard wrote to top Democrats on the House and Senate Intelligence committees Monday, saying that Trump asked her to be there “under my broad statutory authority to coordinate, integrate, and analyze intelligence related to election security.”
Trump has argued that he wants to see fair, secure elections, and that is why he is seeking changes to how they are run, and has ordered investigations into potential fraud. Critics have said the president wants to control elections to his own benefit and, in doing so, would overturn part of the U.S. Constitution.
What People Are Saying
Fulton County Chairman Robb Pitts, speaking Wednesday: “The president himself and his allies, they refuse to accept the fact that they lost, and even if he had won Georgia, he would still have lost the presidency.”
Democratic Senator Mark Warner of Virginia, speaking to reporters earlier this week: “Let’s be clear: It is inappropriate for a sitting president to personally involve himself in a criminal investigation tied to an election he lost."
DNI Tulsi Gabbard, in an X post Monday: "Contrary to the blatantly false and slanderous accusations being made against me by Members of Congress and their friends in the propaganda media, the Office of the Director of National Intelligence has and will continue to take action under my statutory authorities to secure our nation and ensure the integrity of our elections."
What Happens Next
Further details were expected later Wednesday on the Fulton County filing. The federal government's investigation into the 2020 election continues.
This article contains reporting by The Associated Press.
Update 2/4/26, 1 p.m. ET: This article was updated with additional information.
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