FACT CHECK: Did No Court Consider Evidence Of Election Fraud In The 2020 Elections?

Elias Atienza | Senior Reporter

An image shared on Facebook purports “no court” considered evidence of election fraud in the 2020 elections.

Verdict: False

While several cases were dismissed based on mootness and standing, several courts did hear evidence of election fraud and other alleged irregularities.

Fact Check:

Former President Donald Trump has continued to spout unfounded claims of a stolen election, USA Today reported. President Joe Biden won the election with 306 electoral votes, according to the National Archives.

The Facebook post claims that “no court had the gust to HEAR the evidence” in regards to Trump’s election fraud claims. The post further alleged the “price of getting involved was too high.” (RELATED: Did Georgia Find Over’ 1,600 Instances Of Noncitizens Voting In 2020′?)

This claim is false. While several judges did dismiss cases based on standing and other factors not related to evidence, at least 11 cases brought forth by Trump and his allies were provided the opportunity to present evidence to prove election fraud claims, according to The New York Times. These claims “collapsed under scrutiny,” the outlet reported.

Federal and state judges both consistently found that claims of election fraud were meritless. Check Your Fact has provided examples of judges dismissing cases or declaring the evidence as “non-persuasive.”

  • U.S. Court of Appeals Third Circuit Judge Stephanos Bibas dismissed an attempt from the Trump campaign to stop the certification of Pennsylvania’s election, writing in a November 2020 opinion that, “Free, fair elections are the lifeblood of our democracy. Charges of unfairness are serious. But calling an election unfair does not make it so. Charges require specific allegations and then proof. We have neither here.”
  • District Court Judge Linda V. Parker, in dismissing the “Kraken” lawsuit filed by Trump ally and lawyer Sidney Powell, stated that the “closest Plaintiffs get to alleging that election machines and software changed votes for President Trump to Vice President Biden in Wayne County is an amalgamation of theories, conjecture, and speculation…”
  • Wayne County Circuit Chief Judge Timothy M. Kenny denied a request to stop the certification results in Wayne County, Michigan. Kenny wrote in his Nov. 13, 2020 opinion, “Clearly, every legitimate vote should be counted. Plaintiffs contend this has not been done in the 2020 Presidential election. However, plaintiffs have made only a claim but have offered no evidence to support their assertions.”
  • Nevada judge James Russell rejected a Trump campaign lawsuit that sought to overturn the election results in Nevada. In Russell’s Dec. 4, 2020 opinion, he wrote that “the Court finds that there is no credible or reliable evidence that the 2020 General Election in Nevada was affected by fraud.”

Rebecca Green, an associate professor of law and co-director of the election law program at William and Mary Law School, pointed Check Your Fact to a report titled “Lost But Not Stolen,” released by several conservative lawyers and former federal judges. (RELATED: No, Joe Biden Did Not Admit To Election Fraud)

“This Report shows that those efforts failed because of a lack of evidence and not because of erroneous rulings or unfair judges,” the report reads in part. “Judges, legislators, and other election officers, often including members of his own party, gave Trump ample time and every opportunity to present evidence to make his case. Post-election audits or reviews in each state also failed to show any irregularities or fraud that would overturn the electoral results.”

The report found that 20 cases were dismissed, 14 were voluntarily dismissed by Trump and his allies before any evidentiary hearings, and 30 “included a hearing on the merits,” according to the report. The report found that the Trump campaign did win a “Pennsylvania case involving far too few votes to overturn the results did Trump and his supporters prevail.”

“All judicial decisions, and indeed all legal practice, involves two things: (1) determination of the law, and (2) application of the law to the facts,” Jim Gardner, A professor at the University of Buffalo’s School of Law, told Check Your Fact via email. “It is thus impossible for a court to decide a case without “considering” the facts.”

Gardner added that those who lose in court “often claim the former” when the reality is that the court “simply disbelieved” the party’s interpretation of the facts.

In addition to court decisions, investigations and audits have also affirmed that Biden won the election fairly. A June 2021 report released by Michigan’s Senate Oversight Committee “found no evidence of widespread or systematic fraud in Michigan’s prosecution of the 2020 election.” An October 2021 audit affirmed Wisconsin’s 2020 election results. A September 2021 audit of Arizona’s Maricopa County election results also affirmed Biden’s win, according to CNN.

A December 2021 Associated Press investigation found that there was too little fraud to tip election results to Trump. Former Attorney General Bill Barr, who previously stated that there was no evidence of widespread election fraud, called Trump’s claims “detached from reality,” according to NPR.

Elias Atienza

Senior Reporter
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