Trump allies reportedly broke into Georgia voting systems in a failed attempt to uncover fraud.
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This week, I’m turning The Briefing over to my colleague Lawrence Norden, senior director of the Brennan Center’s Elections and Government Program. He writes about new charges against the Trump team for accessing sensitive voting data in Georgia without authorization and what those charges mean for our democracy.

—Michael Waldman

Donald Trump was indicted in Georgia state court last night, along with 18 of his allies, for attempting to overturn the 2020 presidential election results in the state. Many of the charges for Trump and his codefendants mirror or overlap with the charges that Trump faces in a federal case brought by Special Counsel Jack Smith. But among the new charges is a surprise not hinted at until news outlets began reporting on it last weekend.

Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis has uncovered evidence that Trump’s team was behind multiple unauthorized breaches of voting systems

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in Coffee County, Georgia, in January 2021. According to the indictment, Trump allies, including attorney Sidney Powell, directed a group of campaign contractors to copy data and software from voting machines.

The Georgia breaches are especially significant because they involve people within Trump’s inner circle, but they are not isolated incidents — they are part of a disturbing wave of attacks on election security. Nationwide, there have been at least 17 attempts

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to gain unauthorized access to voting equipment since the 2020 election, most with connections to Trump allies or other well-known election conspiracy theorists. In eight separate locations in four states, those efforts were successful.

Prosecuting those who undermine the integrity of our election systems — particularly those who do so from high-profile positions of power — is critical to protecting our democracy. It serves notice to all that law enforcement officials are vigilant and prepared to punish wrongdoing.

These breaches inflict profound damage. Election propagandists have used and manipulated this improperly gathered data to spread lies and further their conspiracy theories about the 2020 election. In Michigan, election denier Matt DePerno posted videos of an associate tampering with a piece of voting equipment

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, spuriously claiming that they had proved how easy it was to make the machine produce manipulated results. (DePerno, who made an unsuccessful run for Michigan attorney general, has since been charged

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with undue possession of a voting machine and conspiracy to gain unauthorized access to a computer or computer system.) In Colorado, speakers at a conference hosted by MyPillow CEO Mike Lindell presented files from the Mesa County election system hard drive

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. The files didn’t reveal any actual conspiracy, but their presentation did constitute what the secretary of state called a “serious breach of voting system security protocols

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.” Without context from reliable sources, these widely viewed videos undermine trust in elections.

Beyond propaganda, these breaches directly threaten the integrity of our elections. Those accessing and inspecting the systems may inadvertently damage them, as apparently happened

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in at least some of the breaches in Michigan. Worse, they could corrupt the equipment with malware or take other actions that might not be detectable. That’s why, when state officials have discovered these unauthorized breaches, they have decertified the relevant systems so that they cannot be used in future elections.

As 2024 approaches, we must strengthen our defenses

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. State officials should follow best practices

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for detecting and confirming whether physical breaches have taken place. These include restricting physical and digital access to the most sensitive equipment through the use of video surveillance, access logs, and keycard systems. Where possible, officials should decertify all affected machines when breaches are discovered. Communication is key: publicly explaining the steps taken in response to any unauthorized breaches improves transparency and builds confidence in our elections.

It must also be clear that there is a price to pay for illegally accessing voting systems. Colorado

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and Minnesota

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recently updated their laws to more explicitly state that such conduct is illegal. The Justice Department should also issue guidance to make clear that tampering with voting equipment can also violate federal law.

Prosecutors in Michigan

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and Colorado

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have indicted multiple individuals connected to unauthorized breaches in those states. In the Georgia indictment, Powell and three others now join the list of those accused of accessing election data without authorization. Whatever the outcome, bringing these cases helps protect and maintain the integrity of our election systems and public confidence in them.





Prosecutorial Independence Takes a Hit in Florida

Last week, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis removed from office an elected state attorney who supported criminal justice reform, even though data shows that most crimes dropped in her Orlando-area jurisdiction in 2021. It’s the second time that the governor has wielded this power against a reform-minded prosecutor over how they used their prosecutorial discretion. DeSantis’s actions “are grounded in misguided ideas about what actually makes communities safe and demonstrates a wholesale disrespect for democracy,” Rosemary Nidiry and Lauren-Brooke Eisen write. Read more

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Understanding the Supreme Court’s Financial Disclosure Rules

Recent revelations of undisclosed, lavish gifts from right-wing billionaires to Supreme Court justices have ignited debates about the nature and scope of the financial reporting requirements that currently apply to the high court. A new Brennan Center explainer details the history of these disclosure laws, exceptions to the rules, and ongoing efforts to reform the laws and enhance judicial accountability. READ MORE

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The Risky Bid for a Constitutional Convention

Conservative activists have long pushed for a constitutional convention to curtail the federal government’s powers, raising concerns of a “runaway convention” that could threaten our fundamental laws. Though progressive advocacy groups largely oppose this campaign, a growing number of reformers are considering whether a convention could offer a chance to make our institutions more democratic. If Congress sets clear rules and limits for conventions, John Kowal writes, Americans across the political spectrum could come to embrace them. Read more

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Expanding Local Voters’ Power in Georgia

The Georgia Supreme Court recently ruled that the state’s constitution allows voters to use ballot measures to repeal or change county commission ordinances. The scope of the decision may soon be tested, as opponents of Atlanta’s “Cop City” law enforcement training facility may rely on a similarly worded state law to block the project’s construction. The outcome of this case “could potentially lead to significant changes in the lawmaking process not only in Atlanta but also throughout every municipality in Georgia,” Emory law professor Fred O. Smith writes in State Court Report. Read more

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A Test of Maine’s Right to Food

Maine’s groundbreaking constitutional right to food is being put to the test as the state’s highest court prepares to hear arguments this fall in a case that challenges Maine’s ban on Sunday hunting. The dispute will define the scope of this unique amendment, which is seen as potentially broader than other states’ hunting and fishing rights. As advocates in other states watch closely, the outcome will set a precedent for interpreting right-to-food measures and could “serve as a stealth vehicle for frustrating reasonable restrictions on guns and gun use in the context of hunting,” Northeastern’s Martha Davis writes in State Court Report. READ MORE

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Coming Up

VIRTUAL EVENT — U.S. v. Trump: The Big Lie on Trial

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Wednesday, August 23, 3–4 p.m. ET



Something larger than Trump will be on trial in Washington and Georgia — the Big Lie of a “stolen” election. Trump didn’t act alone. A web of pundits, elected officials, and media outlets propelled misinformation and baseless conspiracy theories. They stoked distrust in our electoral system, instigating an insurrection. The indictments will echo through American democracy for generations. Join us to hear Brennan Center experts and MSNBC legal analyst Andrew Weissmann discuss the cases and their implications. RSVP today

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News

Jennifer Ahearn on a proposed Supreme Court ethics bill // AMERICAN INDEPENDENT

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Alice Clapman on Virginia’s exit from the voter data partnership ERIC // REUTERS

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Eliza Sweren-Becker on Trump’s bogus defense against election conspiracy charges // INDEPENDENT

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Daniel Weiner on the potential regulation of AI-generated deepfakes in political ads // ASSOCIATED PRESS

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