The information in this article was so important that it was originally posted on the top page of the US Voting section. It has been converted into a separate article to preserve the Committee’s stance, and to continue to combat the falsehoods about the 2020 election that are still in active circulation. It also includes some updated information.
FAWCO’s US Voting Committee stands by the results of the 2020 election. Overseas Americans know that mail-in ballots are safe and secure because we use them. All the ballots cast in the 2020 election were correctly counted, recounted as necessary and certified in accordance with state laws, and the results of the election certified by Congress as required by the Constitution of the United States. We advocate a peaceful transition of power and condemn the violent insurrection that took place in the Capitol on January 6.
We urge FAWCO members:
- to combat misinformation about the election;
- to share their views with their representatives in Congress on this issue, as with all the others affecting us as citizens; and
- to ensure that you are registered to vote in 2021, as several special elections and regular state and local elections will be held quite soon in states such as Louisiana, New Jersey, Texas and Virginia.
You can contact the Committee Chair by email ().
Combating misinformation
Unfortunately, misinformation about the election, including debunked charges of election fraud, is still circulating among Americans. Use accurate information, including from the sources below.
Update, March 17, 2021
US government agencies released two declassified reports on attempts to interfere with US 2020 elections, concluding that:
- no foreign country interfered with the voting process; but
- Russia in particular, and other countries, tried to influence the election results, especially by seeking to undermine public confidence in the integrity of the electoral process.
Neither report is long; voting advocates should read both.
The Office of the Director of National Intelligence published Foreign Threats to the 2020 US Federal Elections, “a declassified version of a classified report that the Intelligence Community provided to the President, senior Executive Branch officials and Congressional leadership and oversight committees on 07 January 2021."
Key judgement 1: We have no indications that any foreign actor attempted to alter any technical aspect of the voting process in the 2020 US elections, including voter registration, casting ballots, vote tabulation, or reporting results. …
Key judgement 2: … Russian President Putin authorized, and a range of Russian organizations conducted, influence operations aimed at denigrating President Biden’s candidacy and the Democratic Party, supporting President Trump, undermining public confidence in the electoral process, and exacerbating sociopolitical divisions in the US. … A key element … was its use of proxies linked to Russian intelligence to push influence narratives … to US media organizations, US officials, and prominent US individuals, including some close to President Trump and his administration.
The Departments of Justice and of Homeland Security submitted a classified report in February 2021, and now a declassified version called Joint Report of the Department of Justice and the Department of Homeland Security on Foreign Interference Targeting Election Infrastructure or Political Organization, Campaign, or Candidate Infrastructure Related to the 2020 US Federal Elections.
We — the Department of Justice, including the FBI, and Department of Homeland Security, including CISA — have no evidence that any foreign government-affiliated actor prevented voting, changed votes, or disrupted the ability to tally votes or to transmit election results in a timely manner; altered any technical aspect of the voting process; or otherwise compromised the integrity of voter registration information of any ballots cast during 2020 federal elections.
Both reports note that the government of Iran also sought to undermine confidence in the US electoral process.
Information as of January 18, 2021
- The Twitter feed of Ellen L. Weintraub, chair of the Federal Election Commission until 2021, remains a good source of information, in addition to those previously provided by FAWCO's US Voting Committee.
- In addition, top officials called the 2020 election “the most secure” in US history.
- Neither the FBI nor the Department of Justice found any evidence of election fraud that could have affected the outcome of the election, even though a few individual cases were identified.
- Click here to see the 60 Minutes interview with Chris Krebs, former head of the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) in the US Department of Homeland Security.
- BBC reports that Fox News and Newsmax walked back claims of voter fraud after receiving threats of defamation lawsuits. A voting-equipment company filed a $1.3-billion defamation suit against one of the attorneys baselessly claiming widespread fraud. [Note: that company, and another company, later filed several other such suits.] A blog has retracted its previous claims of widespread fraud.
- New York Times published a story: "The 'Red Slime' lawsuit that could sink right-wing media" (paywalled).
- A total of 64 lawsuits failed to change the election results. [Note: the final total of failed legal challenges was around 70. Business Insider gives a partial list.]