FBI seizure of Fulton County election ballots happened quickly after criminal probe opened, new timeline shows
The FBI seized 2020 election materials from Georgia's Fulton County just weeks after opening a criminal probe, an unusually fast pace for such a case. The Justice Department argued that the investigation was not a pretext to acquire records that were difficult to obtain through civil litigation.
The FBI seized 2020 election materials from Georgia's Fulton County on January 28, 2026, just 23 days after opening a criminal probe. The Justice Department had previously sued Fulton County to obtain records related to the 2020 election. Kurt Olsen, a 2020 election denier, made the referral that launched the criminal probe on January 5, 2026. The FBI's Atlanta field office approved the request to open a full investigation on January 14. Experts described the timeline as unusually quick, with CNN Senior Law Enforcement Analyst Andrew McCabe questioning why the case was prioritized so rapidly. The Justice Department argued that the investigation was not a pretext to acquire records and that the federal government 'used criminal process to get the records—a higher burden than obtaining them through civil process.'
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