Lead: On Jan. 28, 2026, federal agents serving a court-authorized warrant removed original 2020 voting records from Fulton County’s Elections Hub and Operations Center in Atlanta, officials said. The FBI confirmed it was conducting court-authorized activity at the facility; county leaders said sealed, archived absentee ballots and voting records were taken, raising immediate questions about chain of custody and transparency. The warrant—signed by Magistrate Judge Catherine Salinas—authorized searches for physical 2020 ballots, tabulator tapes and voter rolls, among other items. Local elected officials called the action unprecedented and asked how the county can verify inventory and return of materials.
Key Takeaways
- The FBI executed court-authorized activity at Fulton County’s Elections Hub and Operations Center on Jan. 28, 2026, and confirmed the operation publicly.
- A warrant signed by Magistrate Judge Catherine Salinas listed as sought items: all physical ballots from the 2020 General Election, tabulator tapes and 2020 voter rolls.
- Fulton County officials told ABC News the seized items included original absentee ballots that had been archived and sealed; officials reported entire pallets of boxes were removed.
- Commissioner Marvin Arrington (D) and Commissioner Mo Ivory (D) expressed concern about inventory controls and the security of ballot custody once material left county possession.
- The warrant asserts the materials “constitute evidence of the commission of a criminal offense” and cites statutes on records retention and voter intimidation/false voting.
- The Justice Department sued Fulton County last month seeking access to 2020 election records, including ballot stubs and signature envelopes.
- In November 2025, Fulton County charges in a 2023 election-interference case against former President Donald Trump and others were dropped; separate legal and political disputes over the 2020 result continue to affect Georgia.
Background
The 2020 presidential vote in Georgia was the subject of repeated public claims of fraud by then-President Donald Trump and his allies. State and county officials audited and certified the Georgia results after the election; those certifications have remained the official record. Fulton County, which includes much of Atlanta, became a focal point of several post-election investigations and legal actions, including a 2023 indictment led by then-District Attorney Fani Willis related to alleged efforts to overturn results.
That 2023 prosecution included accusations tied to a Jan. 2, 2021, phone call in which Trump asked Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger to “find” enough votes to change the outcome. The charges from that case were dropped in November 2025, and Willis was later disqualified from the matter following questions about her conduct. Political fallout has continued: a Georgia law passed after the case’s collapse allowed Trump to seek recovery of legal fees, and he has moved to recover roughly $6 million from Fulton County.
Main Event
Fulton County officials said federal agents arrived at the Elections Hub and Operations Center with a search warrant and removed boxes that county staff had previously archived and sealed. According to county commissioners, the sealed ballots were stored on pallets, and agents loaded entire pallets into vehicles, complicating local efforts to inventory specific items removed. The FBI confirmed it was carrying out court-authorized activity at the site on Jan. 28, 2026, but declined further public detail through the ABC News request.
A copy of the warrant obtained by ABC affiliate WSB lists the targeted items and states the materials “constitute evidence of the commission of a criminal offense” and had been “used as the means of committing a criminal offense.” The warrant identifies potential violations of at least two Georgia statutes: one governing retention of election records and another addressing unlawful procurement of false votes or voter intimidation.
Fulton County Commissioner Marvin Arrington told ABC News the items taken were “original voting records, original absentee ballots,” and questioned how the county would know if materials were returned intact. Commissioner Mo Ivory emphasized that the removal method—taking whole pallets—made precise inventory and verification difficult. County officials said they had not been provided full details of what would be retained or for how long.
Analysis & Implications
Legally, the seizure of original ballots and associated records is uncommon and raises immediate chain-of-custody and disclosure questions. Ballots are both evidence in some criminal matters and protected public records in others; the warrant’s language that items “constitute evidence” suggests investigators are treating the materials as relevant to a criminal inquiry. That characterization will be contested by local officials emphasizing election integrity and certification already completed after 2020.
For election administrators, the episode underscores a tension between investigative needs and public confidence. If federal agents remove sealed, county-held ballots, counties must rely on detailed inventories, photographs, or other documentation to demonstrate no alteration occurred. Absent transparent, joint inventory procedures, public trust in election stewardship may erode—particularly in a jurisdiction already politically polarized.
Politically, the action will be framed differently across partisan lines. Supporters of the seizure may argue it is a legitimate law-enforcement step to examine potential offenses; critics will view it as overreach that interferes with certified election records. Practically, the DOJ’s prior civil suit seeking access to Fulton’s 2020 materials signals sustained federal interest, and any criminal inquiry that follows could prompt additional litigation over access, return and use of the records.
Comparison & Data
| Item in Warrant | Description |
|---|---|
| All physical ballots (2020 General) | Original absentee and in-person ballots from the 2020 election, reportedly archived and sealed |
| Tabulator tapes | Machine-generated tapes that record vote totals from tabulators used in 2020 |
| 2020 voter rolls | Registers and associated records of registered voters in 2020 |
The warrant’s scope, as shown above, targets physical materials commonly retained under state law for a specified period after an election. Counties maintain different inventory and storage practices; Fulton officials’ claim that items were on pallets and sealed is consistent with standard archival processes, but the federal removal of whole pallets complicates item-level accounting.
Reactions & Quotes
“These are the original voting records, original absentee ballots. Once that stuff leaves our custody, where is the chain of custody? How can we know if we’re going to get everything back? How can we know if they might do something mischievous?”
Marvin Arrington, Fulton County Commissioner (Democrat)
“The boxes of ballots…are stored on pallets — and the FBI was removing the whole pallets. So how can we inventory what they’re taking?”
Mo Ivory, Fulton County Commissioner (Democrat)
“We are conducting court-authorized activity at the Fulton County Election Hub and Operations Center.”
FBI (statement, Jan. 28, 2026)
Unconfirmed
- Whether the FBI removal is part of a new criminal indictment or a parallel investigative step has not been confirmed by DOJ.
- It is not yet confirmed which specific ballots or how many boxes were taken, beyond county descriptions that entire sealed pallets were removed.
- No public court filing has, at the time of this report, detailed how long the materials will be retained or the exact procedures for county access or inventory verification.
Bottom Line
The FBI’s seizure of archived 2020 ballots from Fulton County on Jan. 28, 2026, is an uncommon and consequential action that exposes tensions among federal investigators, local election officials and the public. Key questions now center on legal justification, the evidentiary use of the materials and robust chain-of-custody documentation to preserve confidence in certified election outcomes.
Watch for forthcoming federal filings, court oversight of the seized materials, and any negotiated protocols for joint inventory or review that could limit political fallout. The episode is likely to shape debates in Georgia and nationally about how election records are preserved, accessed and used in investigations going forward.
Sources
- ABC News — national news report summarizing warrant and county statements (media)