Judge rejects Justice Department's request for names of 2020 election workers in Fulton County

In a blow to the Trump administration, a federal judge on Tuesday ruled that the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) could not have the names and personal information for every person who worked during the 2020 election in Georgia’s Fulton County. The DOJ had obtained a grand jury subpoena in April that sought the personal information of county employees and volunteer poll workers. As per the Associated Press, Fulton County had asked a judge to quash the subpoena, claiming that the administration would use it to go after political rivals.

"Given the low need for the subpoenaed information and the highly burdensome nature of the disclosure of the same, the Subpoena is unreasonable and must be quashed," U.S. District Judge William Ray wrote in his ruling. He also said that the scope of the ruling was "staggering." Judge Ray acknowledged that the DOJ and grand juries often worked together to investigate alleged crimes, but "that does not give the DOJ the right to use the Grand Jury to do whatever the DOJ wants."

The judge also noted that even if the personal information of election workers from Fulton County were given to the DOJ, it could not have been used to charge anybody. "That is because the statute of limitations for any possible crime arising from the 2020 Election has long expired," he wrote. President Trump has long claimed the occurrence of widespread voter fraud in Georgia's most populous county, which he believes led to him losing the state in the 2020 presidential election.

"In these hyper-political times in which we currently live, there are sure to be some who disagree with this decision because they believe the allegations of fraud in the 2020 Election and believe that 'light' should be brought to those claims," Ray added. "Thus, everyone, whether you support the President or you do not, or whether you believe the 2020 Election was fair or believe that it was not, should be concerned about the DOJ's ability to utilize the power of the Grand Jury to appropriate your private information without a legitimate purpose."

The grand jury subpoena came after the FBI obtained a search warrant for the Fulton County election hub in January and seized hundreds of ballot boxes and documents about the 2020 election. Justice Department lawyer William McComb argued that the statute of limitations issue was irrelevant at an investigative stage, as it would only be used to figure out what charges could be brought for alleged election-related crimes.

"My point is, as we sit here now, we are not sure what charges can be brought. That's the whole point of the investigation," he said. McComb further argued that contact information obtained by the DOJ would only be used to communicate with individuals who "worked at the polls who may have seen, heard, or done something in and of themselves." However, Fulton County lawyer Kamal Ghali argued that such means of action, like the subpoena, would "chill participation by election workers" in future elections.