Warnock Leads Entire Fulton County Congressional Delegation in Letter to Department of Justice Demanding Answers on Fulton County Elections Raid Subpoena

Senator Reverend Warnock is demanding answers from the Department of Justice and Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche on the recent subpoena issued in the Fulton County Elections Raid case

The Senator organized multiple lawmakers to join his efforts

Senator Warnock and lawmakers: "The subpoena does not appear limited to a specific alleged incident, precinct, witness or irregularity. Instead, it seeks personal identifying information for thousands of people who helped administer an election more than five years ago."

ICYMI from Capitol Beat: Georgia Democrats seek answers from Justice Department over Fulton election worker subpoena

Washington, D.C. - U.S. Senator Reverend Raphael Warnock (D-GA) is demanding answers from the Department of Justice and Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche relating to the subpoena issued by U.S. Attorney based in North Carolina regarding the recent Fulton County Election Raid. The Senator's efforts were joined by the entire Fulton County Congressional delegation of U.S. Senator Jon Ossoff (D-GA), Rep. Nikema Williams (D-GA-05), and Rep. Lucy McBath (D-GA-06),

"Fulton County election workers have already endured years of threats and harassment from false claims about the 2020 election," said Senator Reverend Warnock, lawmakers. "The Department's subpoena risks compounding that harm by demanding the residential addresses and personal contact information of thousands of people who served in election administration."

On April 17, 2026, a federal grand jury subpoena was issued to the Fulton County Board of Registration and Elections seeking rosters and information of election staff members, including person's name, position, residential address, email address, and personal telephone numbers. The subpoena was issued in the Northern District of Georgia, but it identifies an Assistant United States Attorney from the Middle District of North Carolina as the requesting prosecutor.

In January, the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) executed a search warrant at an elections office in Fulton County and seized nearly 700 boxes of original ballots and records from the 2020 presidential election. The search was related to an effort by President Trump's Department of Justice (DOJ) to investigate alleged voter fraud in the county, which has long been a centerpiece of President Donald Trump's baseless claims that the 2020 presidential election was stolen from him. A review by President Trump's own DOJ during his first term was unable to find any evidence to support allegations of widespread fraud that could have changed the result of the 2020 presidential election.

"The 2020 Presidential election in Georgia has been counted, recounted, audited, certified, litigated, and repeatedly confirmed," continued Senator Reverend Warnock, lawmakers. "Nevertheless, false claims about the 2020 election have continued to erode trust in our elections and fuel harassment against election workers and volunteers."

In addition to the January raid in Fulton County, the DOJ has filed a lawsuit against Fulton County for its election records. The DOJ is also suing two dozen states for non-public voter roll information. In February, Senator Warnock, Rep. Nikema Williams (D-GA-05), and Lucy McBath (D-GA-06) sent a letter to Attorney General Pam Bondi demanding answers and an immediate briefing from the DOJ following the raid of the Fulton County elections center.

A copy of the letter can be found HERE and text is below:

Dear Acting Attorney General Blanche:

As elected representatives of Fulton County, Georgia, we write with grave concerns regarding the Department of Justice's (the Department) recent federal grand jury subpoena seeking sensitive personal information for individuals who served as election workers, staff, contractors, or volunteers in Fulton County during the November 2020 General Election. We request an immediate briefing on this matter from the Department of Justice and answers to our written questions below.

On April 17, 2026, a federal grand jury subpoena was issued to the Fulton County Board of Registration and Elections seeking rosters of election staff members sufficient to identify each person's name, position or function, residential address, email address, and personal telephone number. The subpoena applies broadly to individuals assigned to review mail-in ballots, serve on voter review panels, work at mobile voting locations, transport ballots or election media, work or volunteer on Election Day, participate in the risk-limiting audit or recount, serve as precinct managers or assistant managers, or otherwise work for or contract with the Fulton County Board of Registration and Elections.

This demand is deeply troubling. The subpoena does not appear limited to a specific alleged incident, precinct, witness, or irregularity. Instead, it seeks personal identifying information for thousands of people who helped administer an election more than five years ago. Many of these individuals were or remain public servants, temporary workers, or volunteers who performed routine election administration duties. Their service should not expose their home addresses, personal email accounts, or phone numbers without a clear, lawful, and narrowly tailored basis.

The Fulton County Board of Registration and Elections has moved to quash the subpoena, arguing that the request is "unprecedented," "harassing," "overbroad," and "untethered to any reasonable need." The motion also notes that the subpoena is unlikely to support a federal prosecution because the statutes of limitations for any conceivable 2020 election-related federal offense appear to have expired.

The structure of the subpoena raises additional concerns. Although the subpoena was issued in the Northern District of Georgia, the materials identify an Assistant United States Attorney from the Middle District of North Carolina as the requesting prosecutor. The subpoena attachment also instructs Fulton County to send responsive materials to the identified Assistant United States Attorney and a Federal Bureau of Investigation agent, rather than clearly directing production to the grand jury itself.

The 2020 Presidential election in Georgia has been counted, recounted, audited, certified, litigated, and repeatedly confirmed. Nevertheless, false claims about the 2020 election have continued to erode trust in our elections and fuel harassment against election workers and volunteers.

Fulton County election workers have already endured years of threats and harassment from false claims about the 2020 election. The Department's subpoena risks compounding that harm by demanding the residential addresses and personal contact information of thousands of people who served in election administration.

We expect your full compliance with federal law and regulations governing grand jury subpoenas, the handling of sensitive personal information, and the protection of election workers from intimidation or misuse of federal law enforcement authority. The Department must also avoid even the appearance that federal criminal process is being used to revive baseless claims about a settled election or to target the people who administered it.

Given these concerns, we request that your office provide a briefing to our offices no later than May 22, 2026, and provide written responses to the following questions by June 1, 2026:

1. What is the legal and factual basis for seeking personal identifying information of Fulton County election workers, staff, contractors, and volunteers?
2. Clarify the legal and factual basis for the substantial breadth of categories of individuals regarding whom the subpoena seeks information.
3. Did a federal grand jury authorize the issuance of the subpoena? If so, where is that grand jury impaneled? Why is the return of the subpoena directed to an Assistant U.S. Attorney and not to the grand jury?
4. What specific federal offense(s) is the Department investigating through this subpoena? Identify the statute of limitations timeframe for each specific federal offense.
5. Why did the Department seek residential addresses, personal email addresses, and personal telephone numbers, rather than less sensitive records sufficient to identify job function or role?
6. Why does the subpoena cover thousands of individuals rather than a narrower set of records tied to specific incidents, precincts, witnesses, or identified investigative needs?
7. What supervisory approvals at the Department of Justice were required before the U.S. Attorney's Office sought personal information from election workers and volunteers?
8. Why is the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Middle District of North Carolina involved in grand jury proceedings in the Northern District of Georgia concerning Fulton County election workers?
9. Has the Department served similar subpoenas, preservation requests, records requests, search warrants, or demands to other Georgia counties, other states, election boards, election offices, election vendors, or state officials related to the 2020 election?
10. What safeguards will the Department apply to protect the personal information of election workers, including limits on access, retention, sharing, disclosure, and future use? Which individuals will have access to this personal information?
11. Will the Department commit that the information sought in the subpoena, if received, will not be shared with individuals or entities outside the Department, including state officials, political actors, private parties, or members of the public?
12. What steps did the Department take before issuing this subpoena to evaluate its effect on election worker safety, recruitment, retention, and public trust in election administration?
13. Did the Department consider less intrusive means of obtaining any information it claims is relevant to its investigation? If so, please explain what alternatives were considered and why they were rejected.

Georgia's election workers and the public deserve to know why the Department is seeking their personal information and what safeguards will prevent misuse of this sensitive information.

Thank you for your attention to this matter.

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