Election workers count Fulton County ballots at State Farm Arena on November 4, 2020 in Atlanta, Georgia.
Jessica McGowan | Getty Images
A federal judge in Atlanta on Tuesday blocked a Justice Department subpoena seeking the names of election officials in Fulton County, Georgia, from the 2020 election.
President Donald Trump has falsely claimed for years that he actually won Georgia’s 2020 presidential election, focusing allegations of voter fraud on the count that took place in Fulton County, whose largest city is Atlanta.
“The subpoenas seek disclosure of personally identifying information about thousands of employees and volunteers who participated in activities related to the 2020 election,” Judge William Wray wrote in his order canceling the Justice Department’s subpoenas.
“Disclosure of this magnitude threatens to chill participation in future elections and is certain to have an impact on Fulton County,” wrote Ray, who was appointed by President Trump in 2018 to the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Georgia.
The Fulton County Board of Registration and Elections had sought to block the subpoenas, arguing that their purpose was to “target, harass, and punish” people considered to be President Trump’s political opponents.
Trump was previously charged by the Fulton County District Attorney’s Office with trying to overturn his loss to former President Joe Biden in Georgia’s 2020 election. The case was dismissed in 2025 after District Attorney Fani Willis was disbarred.
President Trump has repeatedly suggested that voter fraud was widespread even in elections he won. Critics say this rhetoric undermines public confidence in the election results.
He is calling on Congress to pass legislation known as the SAVE America Act, which would require identification at the ballot box and proof of citizenship to register to vote. And he has frequently said he wants to reduce mail-in voting.
The Justice Department argued to the judge that it is investigating potential criminal conduct after the 2020 election, “including allegations that Fulton County failed to preserve ballot images from 2020 for the period required by law.”
But “the scope of the grand jury subpoenas…is staggering,” he wrote.
“So, is there anything wrong with the Department of Justice using a grand jury to subpoena these records from Fulton County? In this court’s view, yes,” Ray wrote.
“Even if these records lead to the Department of Justice finding someone who worked in Fulton County in the 2020 election to support the theory that the 2020 election was unfair, they will not lead to information that can be used to charge anyone with anything, at least not actionable charges.”
He noted that the statute of limitations for any crimes related to the 2020 election is “long past.”
“Whether you support the president or not, or whether you believe the 2020 election was fair or not, everyone should be concerned about the Department of Justice’s ability to use grand jury powers to misappropriate personal information without legitimate purposes,” Wray wrote.
The judge said there was nothing to prevent the Justice Department from continuing to investigate Trump and others’ claims of voter fraud in the 2020 election.
“The grand jury’s power, which exists to investigate potential crimes and bring forth viable indictments, simply cannot be used to do so,” Ray wrote.
In a statement to CNBC about Wray’s ruling, a Justice Department spokesperson said, “The district court’s holding that the potential statute of limitations precludes a grand jury’s investigation of the 2020 Georgia election is inconsistent with numerous Supreme Court precedents.”
“The department is considering all options to challenge the court’s order, which jeopardizes both the grand jury’s historic authority and the long-delayed assessment of the 2020 election process,” the spokesperson said.
