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Swede

(38,659 posts)
Thu Jan 29, 2026, 08:40 AM Thursday

"I can no longer...satisfy the Citizens of Atlanta and the world that those ballots are secure."

Last edited Fri Jan 30, 2026, 08:26 AM - Edit history (1)

Winning the midterms depends on the survival of our democratic institutions.

"now that the ballots had been seized, he said, the county 'can no longer satisfy … that those ballots are still secure.'"

-Fulton County Commission Chair Robb Pitts (via ProPublica)

www.propublica.org/article/fbi-...

The Incog Stew (@theincogstew.bsky.social) 2026-01-29T11:19:25.756Z
21 replies = new reply since forum marked as read
Highlight: NoneDon't highlight anything 5 newestHighlight 5 most recent replies
"I can no longer...satisfy the Citizens of Atlanta and the world that those ballots are secure." (Original Post) Swede Thursday OP
Hello, courts? orangecrush Thursday #1
I contacted my Congress members AGAIN Today to demand: IMPEACH Donald J. Trump. NOW. Joinfortmill Thursday #11
So what about voting machine access? bluestarone Thursday #2
Yes, it is AverageOldGuy Thursday #4
Some states never trusted those machines RainCaster Thursday #6
Scroll down from the link posted Botany Thursday #8
WOW! That pretty much is proof that we are bluestarone Thursday #9
Stalin Quote yankee87 Thursday #16
dvscorp08! Is a password, not machine code... reACTIONary Thursday #17
Thank you Botany Friday #19
I would say an emphatic YES. Joinfortmill Thursday #12
There is a republican woman popsdenver Thursday #14
Help me out here AverageOldGuy Thursday #3
Criminal case vs Trump for election interference was only dropped Nov 2025 wishstar Thursday #15
Weren't all the votes in Fulton County recounted by hand with a pro Trump observer watching the count? Botany Thursday #5
Correct. Pinback Thursday #13
Recounted three times. reACTIONary Thursday #18
Interesting MakeThemCry Thursday #7
This man has gone fucking mad with power. He needs to be fired now. Initech Thursday #10
I can't seem to find the name of the federal judge who signed this warrant Buckeyeblue Friday #20
U.S. Magistrate Judge Catherine Salinas EdmondDantes_ Friday #21

Joinfortmill

(20,387 posts)
11. I contacted my Congress members AGAIN Today to demand: IMPEACH Donald J. Trump. NOW.
Thu Jan 29, 2026, 11:33 AM
Thursday

And I'm gonna do it every goddamn week until they do it. I invite you to join me. Flood their sites with messages!

AverageOldGuy

(3,497 posts)
4. Yes, it is
Thu Jan 29, 2026, 10:18 AM
Thursday

I served 12 years (2012 - 2024) on the Electoral Board in a rural VA county.

All voting machines I am familiar with have an internal hard drive that saves election results for the past some number of elections -- our machines kept last seven elections. Retrieving the data requires a court order plus software that is available only to the manufacturer.

I'm certain your concern is that Trump's people could get access to voting machines and fix them to somehow screw around with the next election. To do that, they must have access to the machines as well as the ability to mess with the machine's internal processes for handling and tallying ballots -- and I'm certain some of Musk's tech bros could do that, provided they have unfettered access to the machines.

Botany

(76,618 posts)
8. Scroll down from the link posted
Thu Jan 29, 2026, 10:55 AM
Thursday
https://thiswillhold.substack.com/p/she-won-part-ii-seven-judges-direct

Georgia’s Gov. Kemp w/election deniers two of whom are wearing t-shirts with the machine code
language obtained by their illegal searching Georgia’s voting machines hardware and software.
It is all a big joke to them. They knowingly cheat.

bluestarone

(21,554 posts)
9. WOW! That pretty much is proof that we are
Thu Jan 29, 2026, 11:04 AM
Thursday

Fucked in 2026, if i read this correct. What options are left for our democracy to survive?

yankee87

(2,772 posts)
16. Stalin Quote
Thu Jan 29, 2026, 05:05 PM
Thursday

Doesn't matter who votes, it's who counts. I strongly believe there won't be an election.

Botany

(76,618 posts)
19. Thank you
Fri Jan 30, 2026, 07:27 AM
Friday

Those t-shirts show me that cyber security of our elections is treated as a joke by the GOP

popsdenver

(1,832 posts)
14. There is a republican woman
Thu Jan 29, 2026, 01:55 PM
Thursday

sitting in Prison in Colorado, for covertly allowing Republican geek, Mafia Members access to our voting machines, and especially the hard drive software programming........I wonder how many attempts there were in other districts/States that succeeded, and didn't get caught????
Trump and the Republicans have been trying to get the woman pardoned, but since it was state courts that convicted her, The feds can't pardon her......
So now, the Republicans and Trump are trying to destroy Colorado in every way they can.......coming soon to every Blue State in the Country.......Just look at Minnesota.........

AverageOldGuy

(3,497 posts)
3. Help me out here
Thu Jan 29, 2026, 10:14 AM
Thursday

Federal law requires that ballots in federal elections be retained for 22 months after which they can be destroyed, depending on local or state laws.

I served 12 years on the Electoral Board of a rural Virginia county. On the day after each election -- before noon -- we must have all ballots -- used and unused ballots -- packaged and sealed and delivered to the Clerk of the Circuit Court. The Clerk keeps the ballots and other paperwork associated with the election in her vault for the required time -- 22 months for federal elections, 30 days for state and local. Then -- our clerk, and every other clerk I knew of, had the ballots shredded and incinerated.

WTF are they doing in Atlanta , holding onto ballots from an election that was over five years ago? 22 months after Nov 2020 is September 2022. Those ballots should have been disposed of a long time ago. Or maybe Georgia hangs on to ballots forever???

Can someone familiar with Georgia election procedures weigh in here?

Of course, if the actual ballots have been destroyed, then watch for Trump to lose his shit.

wishstar

(5,805 posts)
15. Criminal case vs Trump for election interference was only dropped Nov 2025
Thu Jan 29, 2026, 02:34 PM
Thursday

so makes sense that with the ongoing indictment, the ballots were retained and then the Feds under Trump immediately started asking for voter info from Fulton County.

https://abcnews.go.com/US/georgia-prosecutor-drops-election-interference-case-trump/story?id=127898245

Botany

(76,618 posts)
5. Weren't all the votes in Fulton County recounted by hand with a pro Trump observer watching the count?
Thu Jan 29, 2026, 10:19 AM
Thursday

Trump wants to be like Stalin, Hitler, and Korea’s Dear Leaders in rewriting history.

The real history: From wiki

During the phone call, Trump maintained falsely that he had won Georgia by "hundreds of thousands of votes", insisting that the certified election results were wrong.[48] He said that Raffensperger should "reevaluate" the election's results, citing a variety of different conspiracy theories regarding voting in the state. Raffensperger, in response, answered that the election results in that state were correct and legitimate, and that Trump "had got his data wrong". During his attempts to pressure Raffensperger into changing the election results, Trump said, "I just want to find 11,780 votes", the minimum number needed to overcome Biden's advantage in Georgia. Trump also tried to intimidate Raffensperger, hinting that Raffensperger and his attorney could face a possible criminal investigation. Trump said, "You know, that's a criminal offense. And you know, you can't let that happen. That's a big risk to you."

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Trump%E2%80%93Raffensperger_phone_call

Pinback

(13,535 posts)
13. Correct.
Thu Jan 29, 2026, 12:06 PM
Thursday

Sidney Powell, Cleta Mitchell, Kenneth Cheesebro, and the other idiots aiding and abetting this crackpot scheme were repeatedly defeated in court, but Trump and the Qanon types will never let it go.

ETA: I also see this as a way to remind Republican voters of how Brad Raffensperger, who’s hoping to become Georgia governor, participated in the “conspiracy to steal the 2020 election” from Trump.

Initech

(107,861 posts)
10. This man has gone fucking mad with power. He needs to be fired now.
Thu Jan 29, 2026, 11:07 AM
Thursday

Enough is enough!

Buckeyeblue

(6,270 posts)
20. I can't seem to find the name of the federal judge who signed this warrant
Fri Jan 30, 2026, 08:03 AM
Friday

Has anyone come across that? Was there a warrant or did the FBI just steal them?

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