Brad Raffensperger, Georgia’s top elections official, moved into the media spotlight in January 2021 when he refused pressure from then-President Donald Trump to reverse Joe Biden’s victory in the state. The Republican secretary of state is back in headlines, after a Georgia grand jury indicted Trump and several allies on 41 charges for allegedly trying to steal the 2020 election.
Raffensperger:My family voted for Trump. He threw us under the bus anyway.
Raffensperger rejects Trump’s request over the phone
Days before the Jan. 6, 2021 Capitol riot, Raffensperger spent an hour on the phone with Trump. The then-president called the state’s top election official imploring him to “find” enough votes to overturn the recent election results.
“And there’s nothing wrong with saying, you know, um, that you’ve recalculated,” Trump said in the recorded call.
Raffensperger stood by the Georgia election results, which had been counted and confirmed three times prior to Trump’s call. By just about 0.25% of the vote, President Joe Biden defeated Trump in Georgia, becoming first Democratic presidential candidate in almost 30 years to capture the state.
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‘The numbers don’t lie’: Raffensperger rejects voter fraud claims
Raffensperger publicly condemned the violence of Jan. 6, along with the increased threats to election officials ahead of last November’s election. He again refuted claims of a stolen election in his book, “Integrity Counts,” published in November 2021.
Raffensperger testified before the Georgia grand jury June of last year. That same month, he also appeared before the House subcommittee investigating the riot.
“No, the numbers are the numbers,” Raffensperger said during the hearing, in response to voter fraud allegations. “The numbers don’t lie.”
Raffensperger elected for a second term as secretary
Since winning reelection in 2022, Raffensperger has continued the election reform efforts he began in his first four-year term. A top priority for Raffensperger is “secure and accessible elections,” according to his website. His implemented changes include photo ID requirements for all forms of voting.
Critics – including his most recent opponent, Democrat Bee Nguyen – say his measures are just another form of voter suppression.
“What we’re looking at here is a secretary of state who talks out of both sides of his mouth,” Nguyen said of Raffensperger last summer, referring to policies that she said still endorse false claims of election fraud.
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State election received unprecedented attention in the midterms
A role that historically received little attention from voters, secretaries of state rose to prominence after 2020. Among them, Raffensperger became among the most famous for his interactions with Trump.
Secretary of state races became a “Big Lie” battleground in last year’s midterms. Voters in at least 13 states, including Minnesota and Arizona, saw on their ballot a candidate who endorsed claims of a stolen election. None of those candidates won their race.
Who is Brad Raffensperger?
Raffensperger was first elected secretary of state in 2018. He spent three years before that in the Georgia House of Representatives after serving two as a city councilmember in one of Atlanta’s suburbs.
A licensed engineer and businessman, Raffensperger also founded the construction company Tendon System and consulting firm Trillium Structures.
