Election officials in Georgia’s most populous county, Fulton, have officially acknowledged significant violations of vote certification procedures during the 2020 presidential race. The admission follows a formal complaint by integrity activist David Cross, who used open records requests to uncover that at least 315,000 ballots were certified despite missing the legally required documentation.
The 2020 race in Georgia was decided by a margin of fewer than 12,000 votes. While Joe Biden was declared the winner of the state’s 16 electoral votes, the narrow margin has kept the result under intense scrutiny for years.
The core of the dispute involves “tabulator tapes”—physical printouts from voting machines that record vote totals. Under Georgia state rules, poll workers must sign these tapes to certify the totals before the results can be legally finalized. Cross’s investigation revealed: 134 tabulator tapes were completely missing signatures.Missing “zero tapes,” which are required to prove machines began the day with no pre-existing votes. Discrepancies regarding scanner serial numbers and irregular poll closing times.
During a recent State Election Board hearing, Ann Brumbaugh, an attorney representing the Fulton County Board of Registration and Elections, stated that the county “does not dispute the allegations,” confirming that the procedural failures violated state election board rules. Potential Penalties and Political Fallout
The State Election Board has characterized these findings as “very troubling.” The case has been referred to the Georgia Attorney General for further investigation. Fulton County could face civil penalties of up to $5,000 for every unsigned tape discovered.
These admissions have reignited discussions surrounding Donald Trump’s long-standing claims that the 2020 election was “stolen” and marred by irregularities. While many of Trump’s broader challenges were rejected by the courts, he has utilized these specific procedural failures to advocate for a total overhaul of the US voting system. Since returning to the White House, President Trump has pushed for:
Stricter voter identification requirements. Significant limits on mail-in voting. A mandatory shift toward paper ballots to ensure a verifiable audit trail.