A newly unsealed affidavit has revealed that the FBI’s recent seizure of 2020 election ballots in Georgia was triggered by a criminal referral from a former advisor to US President Donald Trump.
Last month, federal agents conducted a raid on election offices in Fulton County, Georgia — home to the Democratic-leaning city of Atlanta — removing hundreds of boxes of ballots and related voting materials from the 2020 presidential election. The move sparked immediate legal action from county officials, who filed a lawsuit demanding the return of the seized materials.
On Tuesday, District Judge JP Boulee ordered the release of the search warrant affidavit that justified the operation. According to the document, the investigation centers on alleged “electoral impropriety” during the 2020 election and whether any actions may have constituted intentional violations of federal criminal law.
The affidavit states that the FBI probe originated from a referral by Kurt Olsen, identified in the document as a “Presidentially appointed Director of Election Security and Integrity.” Olsen was previously part of Trump’s legal team that filed numerous lawsuits contesting the 2020 election results. Those cases were widely dismissed by courts across the country due to lack of evidence.
As part of its justification, the affidavit references various claims of voting irregularities in Fulton County — several of which have already been examined and disproven in prior audits, recounts, and court rulings.
Trump lost Georgia to Democrat Joe Biden in 2020 by a narrow margin. Before the final certification of results, Trump famously urged a Georgia election official during a recorded phone call to “find 11,780 votes,” the number he would have needed to overturn the outcome in the state.
In the years that followed, Trump and several allies faced charges in Georgia over alleged efforts to interfere with the election process. However, that case was dismissed in November 2025 after the prosecutor overseeing it became embroiled in controversy.
Trump also faced federal charges connected to alleged election interference and the events of January 6, 2021, when his supporters stormed the US Capitol. Those charges were dropped after his re-election in November 2024.
Fulton County Chairman Rob Pitts strongly criticized the FBI raid, stating that the county had been unfairly targeted.
“Every audit, every recount, every court ruling has confirmed what we the people of Fulton County already knew: our elections were fair and accurate, and every legal vote was counted,” Pitts said.
While elections in the United States are managed by individual states, Trump has recently floated the idea of shifting toward greater federal involvement in voting procedures, citing concerns over election integrity — claims that critics argue remain unsubstantiated.
Beyond the legal arguments and political tensions, this story reflects a deeper national divide. For election workers in Fulton County, many of whom faced threats and public scrutiny after 2020, the reopening of ballot investigations revives memories of intense pressure and uncertainty. For voters on both sides, it underscores how the 2020 election continues to shape American politics years later.
At its core, this case is not just about documents and court filings — it is about trust. Trust in democratic institutions. Trust in election systems. And trust among citizens who increasingly see the same events through vastly different lenses.
As investigations continue and legal battles unfold, the question remains: can confidence in the electoral process be restored, or will the echoes of 2020 continue to define the political landscape?
