Trump’s lawsuit, opened on New Year’s Eve, marked his last attempt to nullify the results in a key state won by President-elect Joe BIden. But the state’s first action in the case comes amid an explosive scandal over Trump’s attempt to privately pressure Raffensperger to embrace his allegations of fraud and “find” thousands of additional votes to reverse the outcome.
The legal petition was also filed at the time Trump took the stage in Georgia, on the eve of the second round of the Senate election, which will determine control of the U.S. Senate. Trump wasted little time before attacking Kemp and Raffensperger at the rally intended to boost David Perdue and Senator Kelly Loeffler’s campaigns for the Senate to further attack the presidential election results.
“I will be here in a year and a half,” said Trump, “and I will campaign against your governor and your crazy secretary of state.”
Trump allegedly based widespread fraud and misconduct by election officials, allegations he repeatedly reiterated in his one-hour Saturday call with Raffensperger, despite the secretary’s resistance and rejection of his claims. Since the tape of his extraordinary call was released on Sunday in the Washington Post and the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, Raffensperger has also conducted TV interviews in which he defended his way of handling the November 3 election process. Monday night’s summary reinforced his arguments.
“The people, the secretary and the governor have fulfilled and fulfilled their obligations under Georgia and federal law – as well as … duly certified presidential voters,” says the state report.
With Trump and his supporters having filed about 60 lawsuits in various states, gaining almost no relief, the new petition by Georgia officials contains little in the way of a free-form legal argument. Instead, after vigorously rejecting Trump’s claims, the brief strings together cite a series of court decisions – many written by Trump nominees – rejecting previous challenges.
U.S. District Court Judge Mark Cohen scheduled a hearing on Tuesday morning about the Trump campaign process and the call for emergency aid. However, the judge reproached the president’s lawyers for not dealing with the case more quickly.
“Although the plaintiffs’ attorney could have requested … an immediate hearing on the last holiday weekend, and obtained a hearing before the District Judge of Duty, the lawyer did not,” Cohen wrote, noting that Trump wants to appeal. of the case all until the Supreme Federal Court, if necessary, until Wednesday, the day when Congress must meet to count the electoral votes.