Time to Recharge
Plus: A new resource for election officials. 🗳️
Published August 29, 2024
It can be easy to forget during this summer of nonstop campaign news. But the push to hold Donald Trump and his allies accountable for trying to steal the 2020 election is marching ahead.
This week Jack Smith, the Justice Department special counsel, filed an updated version of the federal indictment of Trump for the 2020 plot. Just like the original, the new indictment was presented to, and approved by, a grand jury of everyday Americans.
This update brings the indictment into line with the Supreme Court’s ruling last month that presidents are entitled to broad immunity from prosecution for their official acts. Smith stripped out conduct that might be considered official. But he kept all four criminal charges intact, taking the view that Trump was acting as a candidate, not as president, when he pressured states to change the election outcome. You can read more in our blog post.
It’s a sign that the Justice Department, while respecting the Supreme Court’s decision, believes Trump must be held accountable for trying to throw away the votes of tens of millions of Americans. It’s also an example of accountability by the people, through the grand jury process.
Meanwhile, there’s now a trial date in the Arizona fake electors case, one of several prosecutions in states that were key to the scheme. And an Election Denier in Colorado was convicted this month on multiple felony charges related to tampering with voting equipment in a failed effort to prove that the election was rigged. Accountability for 2020 is moving forward, even as we focus on 2024.
This Week in Democracy
- Following the U.S. Supreme Court’s July decision that granted former presidents some immunity from prosecution, Justice Department Special Counsel Jack Smith presented updated evidence about Donald Trump’s attempt to overturn the 2020 election to a new grand jury.
This week, that jury of everyday Americans returned a superseding indictment of Trump, once again charging him with the same four felonies that he was charged with about a year ago. This week’s indictment replaces the one from last year and brings the case in line with the Supreme Court’s ruling.
➡️ READ: Our blog post about the superseding indictment
- The judge overseeing the Arizona fake electors case set a tentative Jan. 5, 2026, trial date for the 16 remaining defendants. The defendants argued this week that the charges should be thrown out altogether. Arizona Attorney General Kris Mayes responded, saying that their arguments “are a distraction and an attempt to deflect from the facts of this case and muddy the waters in the public eye.”
➡️ WATCH: Attorney General Mayes’s full statement
- States United published a new election season communication guide for state and local election officials. The resource offers examples of how to build trust in elections, promote security and safety, and combat disinformation.
➡️ EXPLORE: The full guide
- X (formerly Twitter) made changes to its chatbot to promote truthful information about elections. Earlier this month, a bipartisan group of five secretaries of state wrote to X chairman Elon Musk warning him that the chatbot was giving users inaccurate answers to questions about elections and urging him to implement changes. Users will now be directed to CanIVote.org, a nonpartisan resource from the National Association of Secretaries of State, for accurate election information.
➡️ VISIT: CanIVote.org
State of the States
In Florida, Special Counsel Jack Smith appealed Judge Aileen Cannon’s decision to throw out the case against Donald Trump and two aides for alleged mishandling of classified information. Cannon dismissed the case last month after agreeing with Trump’s lawyers that Smith’s appointment as special counsel was unconstitutional, a ruling that drew fierce criticism from legal experts. Trump’s lawyers must file their reply to the appeal by September 25. Smith’s appeal will then be considered by the Atlanta-based U.S. Court of Appeals for the 11th Circuit.