Georgia Republican David Belle Isle, who is seeking to unseat Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger (R) in next year’s election, made a far-reaching formal open records request Thursday for several documents related to Georgia’s 2020 election, Breitbart News has learned exclusively.
Belle Isle, a former mayor of Alpharetta, said in a phone interview with Breitbart News that he is taking the step, which he is entitled to do under Georgia’s Open Records Act, to bring more transparency to the election process.
“When [Raffensperger] came out of the 2020 election, the first thing he says is that it was the safest, most secure election in Georgia’s history,” Belle Isle explained. “Yet more and more things continue to unravel as we look and we see, and people are wanting to know and get to the bottom of it, and if you’re going to trust elections, there has to be transparency.”
The requests, which include items such as signature complaints, chain of custody documents for drop boxes, and surveillance videos for drop boxes, are listed in full below:
1. From the General Election held on November 3, 2020 (hereinafter “2020 General Election”), all written or recorded reports, complaints, requests for investigation, regarding signatures of electors on absentee ballots, envelopes, or voter registration for Fulton, Cobb, Dekalb, and Clayton counties;2. All reports, records, transfer documents, custody documents, memoranda, notes, written or recorded statements, and any other document or relevant correspondence concerning all chain-of-custody records for every absentee ballot drop box authorized in Georgia for the 2020 General Election;3. All surveillance videos of every authorized absentee ballot drop box utilized during the 2020 General Election;4. All correspondence, both paper and electronic, received by negotiation or otherwise by the Georgia Secretary of State’s office in exchange for the Secretary’s consent to the March 6, 2020 Compromise Settlement Agreement And Release in the lawsuit between Democratic Party of Georgia, Inc. (“DPG”), the DSCC, and the DCCC), as Plaintiff, and Brad Raffensperger, Rebecca N. Sullivan, David J. Worley, Seth Harp, and Anh Le, as Defendants.5. All surveillance videos of the Georgia World Congress Center for the dates of November 3, 2020, and November 4, 2020.6. All reports, records, and tabulations of absentee ballots received by the Secretary of State’s office during the 2020 General Election.7. All reports, records, and tabulations of absentee ballots envelopes received by the Secretary of State’s office during the 2020 General Election.8. All official correspondence to and from the Secretary of State, both paper and electronic, to and from Dominion Voting Systems (hereinafter “Dominion”) or any person associated with Dominion regarding the 2020 General Election.9. All correspondence, both paper and electronic, regarding any of the following: (1) all official audits of the Dominion ballot marking devices (hereinafter referred to as “BMD”); (2) any relationship between Dominion and Pro V&V; (3) the number of BMDs examined by the Secretary of State; and (4) the extent to which such BMDs were examined.10. To the extent not previously requested herein, each and every document pertaining to all reports prepared by any expert or election official regarding: (1) the accuracy and performance of BMDs and (2) all reports of any person who investigated BMDs or absentee ballots for the 2020 General Election.
Belle Isle noted that in Fulton County, the most populous county in the state, there was, for instance, substantial focus on ballot and envelope signature matching concerns. Raffensperger chose, however, to conduct a signature audit in Cobb County because of complaints he said he had received about that county. The sample used in the audit revealed no evidence of fraud.
“Cobb County is probably the best run Metro Atlanta county with respect to the Board of Elections, and if you’re hoping not to find something, that’s where you look,” Belle Isle contended, explaining that part of his request seeks to compare signature complaints received in Cobb County versus signature complaints received in Fulton County to “see if there’s any reasonable basis for them to have chosen Cobb instead of Fulton.”
Georgia’s election results came under intense scrutiny in the weeks after November 3. The results, which were certified after two recounts — one by machine and one by hand — showed President Joe Biden garnering roughly 12,000 more votes than former President Donald Trump out of about five million cast.
Trump and his legal team sought to overturn those results, filing multiple lawsuits in the state that were eventually dropped. The former president has since been outspoken about Georgia, specifically attacking Raffensperger for incompetence and Gov. Brian Kemp (R) for complacency and vowing to endorse candidates who challenge them for reelection.
Belle Isle said he supports the former president despite Trump deciding to endorse another Republican, Rep. Jody Hice (R-GA), in the high-profile secretary of state race, and said he understands Trump’s continued frustrations with the Peach State.
“I don’t blame him for being frustrated about Georgia,” Belle Isle said. “I think we’re going to find in the months to come, definitively, that Georgia got it wrong, that the results that ultimately were certified were incorrect.”
Raffensperger is required to respond to Belle Isle’s request within three business days.
Write to Ashley Oliver at aoliver@breitbart.com.
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