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Georgia Election Interference: Raffensperger Call, Pressure to Find 11,780 Votes

The January 2, 2021 call lasted approximately one hour. Trump told Raffensperger he had won Georgia by 'hundreds of thousands of votes,' cited debunked fraud claims involving suitcases of ballots, a water main break, and Dominion Voting Systems, and asked Raffensperger to recalculate — or simply declare — a Trump victory. Raffensperger told Trump his information was wrong. Trump's lawyers and chief of staff were also on the call. Raffensperger's attorney Ryan Germany debunked specific claims in real time during the call. The recorded call was the most explicit documented example of Trump personally pressuring a state election official to alter certified results. The Fulton County indictment in August 2023 charged Trump under Georgia's RICO statute.

Record summary

Grade

Grade 5 of 5: War Crime / Crime Against Humanity

Conduct that satisfies the legal elements of a war crime under the Rome Statute (Article 8), a crime against humanity (Article 7), or genocide (Article 6). Scale and definitions

Status
Ongoing
Incident date
Record updated
Location
Atlanta, GA / Washington, D.C.
Category
Rule of Law
Legal posture
Active litigation
War-crime classification
Potential
Verification
Independently verified
ICC relevance
No
Sources
4 cited
Stable ID
trump-first-term-georgia-senate-election-interference
Victims
American democratic institutions and the rule of law; Georgia election officials subjected to sustained pressure to alter certified results; Georgia voters whose lawfully cast ballots Trump attempted to negate; future electoral processes threatened by normalization of direct presidential pressure on certification officials
Alleged responsible parties
  • Donald Trump, President; called Secretary of State Raffensperger and asked him to find 11,780 votes; cited debunked fraud claims; suggested Raffensperger faced risk for not cooperating; indicted by Fulton County grand jury on 41 counts including RICO— White House

Key points

  • The January 2, 2021 call was recorded by Raffensperger's office; Trump told Raffensperger he had won Georgia 'by hundreds of thousands of votes' and asked him to 'find' 11,780 votes — one more than Biden's certified margin of 11,779; Trump described the numbers as 'probably' there somewhere and said Raffensperger was not doing his job by not finding them
  • During the call, Trump cited numerous fraud claims that had already been rejected by courts, state investigators, and Raffensperger's own office: suitcases of ballots pulled from under tables after poll watchers left, a water main break (which had been a urinal overflow that did not affect the count), Dominion Voting Systems switching votes, and dead people voting; Raffensperger's attorney Ryan Germany debunked each claim in real time on the call
  • Trump made implicit threats during the call: he told Raffensperger 'you know what they did and you're not reporting it,' said Raffensperger was 'not a fighter' and was 'taking a big risk,' and warned that if Raffensperger did not act he would be prosecuted by the state — which Trump apparently meant as a threat that Raffensperger was exposing himself to legal liability for the very election results Trump was asking him to falsify
  • The Fulton County grand jury indicted Trump and 18 co-defendants on August 14, 2023 on 41 criminal counts, including violation of Georgia's RICO statute, solicitation of violation of oath by a public officer, conspiracy to commit election fraud, false statements and writings, and impersonating a public officer; the indictment covered not just the Raffensperger call but the broader scheme to submit fake electors and pressure Georgia officials
  • Several co-defendants entered guilty pleas and agreed to cooperate with the prosecution: Sidney Powell pleaded guilty in October 2023, Jenna Ellis pleaded guilty in October 2023, and Kenneth Chesebro pleaded guilty in October 2023; each of these lawyers had been central to the fake electors scheme and their cooperation provided testimony about the planning and coordination of the broader effort
  • Trump and co-defendants moved to remove the case to federal court, arguing Trump had acted in his official capacity; the removal motion was denied; Trump sought to delay the trial through pretrial motions; as of early 2026 the trial date had not been set due to ongoing pretrial litigation including disputes over disqualifying DA Fani Willis following revelations of a personal relationship with a prosecutor she had hired

Overview

Trump called Georgia's Secretary of State and asked him to find votes. The number he specified — 11,780 — was exactly one more than Biden's certified margin of victory. The call was recorded. The transcript is public. The Georgia RICO indictment covers this call and the broader scheme.

The Call

The call lasted about an hour. Trump started with the claim that he had won Georgia by hundreds of thousands of votes. He cited a list of fraud allegations. Raffensperger's attorney debunked each one in real time on the call.

At the end of the debunking, Trump asked Raffensperger to find 11,780 votes. The specificity of the number — one more than the certified margin — made the request explicit. Trump was not asking for an investigation. He was asking for a specific numerical outcome.

He said it was probably there somewhere. He told Raffensperger he was taking a big risk. He said Raffensperger was not a fighter.

The Debunked Claims

The fraud claims Trump cited on the call had already been rejected by courts, by Raffensperger's own investigators, and by federal officials including Trump's own Attorney General. Trump cited suitcases of ballots pulled from under tables — video of poll workers moving official ballot containers under a table, which had been reviewed and explained. He cited a water main break — a urinal overflow that had not affected counting. He cited Dominion Voting Systems switching votes — a claim rejected by hand audit and machine audit.

Raffensperger's attorney walked through each one. None was accurate.

The Indictment

On August 14, 2023, a Fulton County grand jury returned a 41-count indictment against Trump and 18 co-defendants. The charges included Georgia's RICO statute, which prosecutors used to capture the entire scheme: the fake electors, the pressure on Georgia officials, the attempts to persuade Vice President Pence not to certify, and the Raffensperger call.

Three of the 18 co-defendants — lawyers Sidney Powell, Jenna Ellis, and Kenneth Chesebro — pleaded guilty within weeks of the indictment and agreed to cooperate.

Update log

  1. Updated with August 2023 Fulton County indictment.

Sequence of events

  1. Georgia certifies Biden victory — Trump begins pressure campaign

    Georgia certifies Joe Biden's victory in the presidential election. Trump loses recount and hand audit challenges. He begins a sustained campaign to pressure Georgia officials, including Governor Kemp, Secretary of State Raffensperger, and state legislators, to alter or reject the certified results.

  2. Trump calls Raffensperger — asks him to find 11,780 votes

    Trump calls Raffensperger for approximately one hour. He asks Raffensperger to find 11,780 votes, cites debunked fraud claims, and implies Raffensperger faces risk by not complying. The call is recorded by Raffensperger's office.

  3. Washington Post reports the call — audio and transcript published

    The Washington Post publishes an audio recording and transcript of the January 2 call. The call receives national and international attention. Multiple members of Congress call for investigations. Federal and state law enforcement begin reviewing whether laws were violated.

  4. Fulton County grand jury returns 41-count indictment

    A Fulton County, Georgia grand jury indicts Trump and 18 co-defendants on 41 criminal counts. The indictment charges violations of Georgia's RICO statute, solicitation of election fraud, conspiracy, and false statements. It covers the Raffensperger call and the broader fake electors scheme.

  5. Sidney Powell, Jenna Ellis, Kenneth Chesebro plead guilty — agree to cooperate

    Three attorneys central to the fake electors scheme plead guilty to reduced charges and agree to cooperate with the prosecution. Their cooperation provides testimony about the planning and coordination of the broader effort to overturn Georgia's certified election results.

Sources

  1. Trump pressured Georgia secretary of state to 'find' votes — audio and transcript — The Washington Post
  2. Transcript of Trump's Call With Georgia Secretary of State — The New York Times
  3. Trump indicted in Georgia election interference case — The Associated Press
  4. Fulton County Indictment — State of Georgia v. Donald John Trump et al. — Fulton County District Attorney

How this record was published

Manually curated This entry was added directly and does not carry an automated audit trail.

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