Nevada judge dismisses 2020 fake electors case — SkimNews
Get the Geopolitics newsletter
Daily geopolitics — wars, elections, sanctions, the diplomatic moves that move markets. Free.
- Judge Mary Kay Holthus dismissed the case against six Nevada Republicans accused of submitting a false certificate declaring Trump the winner of the 2020 election, finding no evidence of fraudulent intent and ruling the state failed to disclose exculpatory evidence to the grand jury
- Nevada Attorney General Aaron Ford, who is running for governor as a Democrat, brought forgery and false-instrument charges and plans to appeal the ruling as 'hasty' and 'premature,' per defense attorney Richard Wright
- Defendants Michael McDonald, chair of the Nevada Republican Party, and Jesse Law, former chair of the Clark County Republican Party, were among those charged; both pleaded not guilty
- The defendants argued the signing was 'political theater' to publicize election concerns, and Holthus agreed that openly announcing their conduct weighed against an inference of fraudulent intent
- Similar cases in Arizona, Michigan, and Georgia have all been dismissed; Arizona AG Kris Mayes dropped her case as a legal maneuver to reset a grand jury deadline after losing an appeal
- Biden won Nevada by more than 30,000 votes; the six Republican electors signed their certificate outside the state legislature and broadcast the ceremony online, footage that became evidence in the case
Why it matters: Nevada becomes the fourth state where 2020 fake-elector prosecutions have collapsed, with courts consistently finding that the defendants' public conduct undermines fraud claims — a pattern AG Ford's planned appeal must overcome. With only Wisconsin's case still active and a federal Trump conspiracy case already dropped after his 2024 win, the legal architecture for state-level accountability is narrowing rapidly.
Ask SkimNews
