Federal Election Interference Indictment: 4 Counts for Defrauding the United States

Overview

The federal election interference indictment described a conspiracy with a specific goal: prevent the legitimate winner of the 2020 presidential election from taking office. The four counts — conspiracy to defraud the United States, obstruction of an official proceeding, and conspiracy against rights — described conduct over months that culminated on January 6, 2021.

The case was closed when the man being prosecuted was elected to the office he had tried to steal.

The Fake Electors

The scheme was documented in detail. In seven states that Biden had won, Trump and his associates recruited Republican activists to sign false certificates declaring themselves the legitimate electors for Trump. These false certificates were transmitted to the National Archives and to Congress — they were official documents asserting false facts.

The purpose was to provide Pence with competing slates of electors: if two slates existed, Pence could claim ambiguity and refuse to certify, or count the Trump slates instead. John Eastman's memos laid out the legal theory; the theory was rejected by Pence's own counsel, by the Justice Department, and eventually by every court that reviewed it.

The Pence Pressure

The indictment documented the pressure on Pence: phone calls, communications through intermediaries, public tweets during the attack that told the assembled mob that Pence had the power to change the outcome. When Pence was being evacuated, Trump's tweet — "Mike Pence didn't have the courage to do what should have been done" — was read by members of the mob who were then searching for the Vice President.

The Immunity Ruling

The Supreme Court's immunity ruling complicated the case significantly. The conservative majority held that a president cannot be prosecuted for official acts — and that communications with the Justice Department are presumptively official. Since much of the alleged conspiracy involved pressure through DOJ channels, the ruling removed significant evidence from the case.

Smith closed the case before the remanded immunity proceedings concluded.