FBI Investigation, Controversial Voter Solicitations, and Trump’s Endorsement Collide in Georgia

Election controversy is swirling ahead of the midterms as a voter solicitation scandal, Trump endorsement, FBI investigation, and election change dominate Georgia’s headlines.

Recently, Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger opened an investigation into deceased people and a deceased pet receiving voter registration solicitations across the state.

Ready to Register, a nonprofit organization that aids in voter registration, is being investigated for the solicitations it sent out through the mail.

In a written comment to the Daily Signal, the Georgia Secretary of State’s office said, “Our office received over 400 letters showing a solicitation to register sent by a third-party organization called ‘Ready to Register, Inc.’ Our office had nothing to do with this solicitation. We are investigating to determine whether Ready to Register violated any Georgia laws and will refer the case for prosecution if our investigation determines any laws were violated.”

The controversy surfaced when Ready to Register sent a voter solicitation mail to a recipient, and that recipient forwarded the mail to Raffensperger’s office. The recipient noted, “My wife has been deceased since April 15, 2023.”

In response to the suspicious solicitations, Garland Favorito, co-founder of VoterGA, told the Daily Signal, “The State Election Board is investigating Ready to Register right now, and we’ll have to wait to see what the investigation reveals in order to determine how to prevent that occurrence in the future.”

FBI Presidential Election Investigation

The FBI has continued investigating Fulton County’s 2020 election records amid new reports that the ongoing investigation has ramped up.

The investigation taking place ties in with President Donald Trump’s claims that the 2020 election was stolen and that he received the majority of the votes from Georgia’s Electoral College.

“The FBI investigators,” Favorito stated, “are reviewing documents now, and they are supposed to complete their initial review on July 17.”

Fulton County Commission Chairman Robb Pitts told The Center Square that the county has not received “communication, notification, or additional subpoenas from the FBI or the Justice Department about an increase in agents reviewing ballots.”

MS Now reported that the FBI has assigned hundreds of analysts to examine ballots from the election. Back in January, the agency took hold of over 600 ballot boxes, tabulator tapes, and additional election materials from the Fulton County Elections office.

On July 7, a federal judge struck down the Department of Justice’s subpoenas seeking information on the county’s election workers.

Trump’s Endorsements

On Monday, Trump endorsed Dr. John Cowan, who is running for the 11th Congressional District in Georgia. Cowan’s run for office comes at a time when Rep. Barry Loudermilk has offered his resignation, which will occur at the end of his current term.

Cowan will face the Democrat candidate, Chris Harden, and the independent candidate, Natalie Richoz, during the general election in November.

“A proven leader, John has served his community well as a highly respected neurosurgeon, small business owner, and civic leader, prior to running for Congress,” Trump said in his endorsement.

New Election Rules

Last Wednesday, the Georgia State Election Board accepted two new rules created to increase confidence in the state’s elections.

Of the two rules, one will have a later impact, as it prohibits a vote-counting method that will not be utilized in the near future. The other rule could lead to a court case, particularly following Georgia Attorney General Chris Carr’s warning that the rule would override the Constitution.

Georgia’s current voting system allows registered voters to choose their candidate or selection on a digital screen, and the system then prints out their selections on a slip of paper that they insert into a scanner, recording the ballot. The slip of paper displays the voter’s selections, while a QR code containing the same information is used to submit voter choices to the state.

However, the QR code system has led some to question whether the information from the QR code and the voter’s paper selections agree.

The first rule the election board agreed upon mandates that vote-counting take place using a paper ballot and not a digital copy. The second rule mandates that vote-counting happens in public.