According to emails first reported by the Washington Post, the Trump campaign directed Republicans in Georgia to cast alternate electoral votes for Trump in the 2020 election, as the "fake electors" that cast votes for Trump in seven states come under increasing legal pressure.
During a joint session of Congress, aides prepare Arizona's Electoral College votes.
In December 2020, Republicans in Arizona, Georgia, Michigan, New Mexico, Nevada, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin met and passed slates of electors that claimed to have voted for Trump.
State-level party officials were included in the electors.
When the election results were counted by Congress, none of the slates of electors were used.
The documents obtained by the House January 6 Committee show that the White House chief of staff was involved in discussions about the effort.
Emails reported by the Post and CNN show that at least in Georgia, a Trump campaign official told the alternate electors that their efforts would be hampered unless they changed their minds.
Government ethics expert Norm Eisen told the Post that the emphasis on secrecy suggests the Trump campaign knew the scheme could be problematic.
The fake electors are being investigated by the Justice Department, as well as the Fulton County District Attorney, who is looking into Trump's attempts to overturn Georgia's election. Criminal charges are possible from those investigations. Wisconsin voters have filed a civil lawsuit against the state's electors, which could result in them having to pay damages and issue a declaration that their actions were not legal. The fake electors scheme is being investigated by the House January 6 Committee and is expected to be part of the public hearings that the committee will hold this week. Lawmakers can make a criminal referral to the DOJ if they find evidence that leads to charges against someone.
Some of the GOP electors in Georgia and elsewhere have defended their actions, claiming they weren't trying to overturn the election results, but just "preserve" Trump's win in case Biden's victory was voided The pending election contest would have been meaningless if they hadn't met and cast their votes. His rights are protected under Georgia law.
In Pennsylvania and New Mexico, the fake electors are less likely to face legal consequences. Since Biden was the actual winner in their state, most alternate electors filed certificates stating they were the state's "duly elected" electors. According to documents published by American Oversight, Pennsylvania and New Mexico have certificates that say they are an alternate slate of electors. The electors in those two states probably won't be prosecuted for forging government documents since they claimed to be legitimate.
The fake electors scheme was part of a broader effort by Trump and his allies to overturn the 2020 election results, which also included dozens of failed lawsuits and unsuccessful efforts to persuade Vice President Mike Pence not to approve the vote count. The fake electors scheme came under scrutiny in December when documents linking the White House to the scheme were first reported.
Emails show that fake Trump electors in Georgia were told to keep their plans secret.
Wisconsin voters are suing the state for faking the 2020 election result.
The fake GOP electors were brought to the attention of the committee.
The documents show that there was a push for an alternate slate of electors.
The Trump campaign tried to overturn the election in a number of key states.
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