Estimated read time: 2-3 minutes
- Retired federal judge Thomas B. Griffith initiated an investigation into claims of fraud in the 2020 presidential election after Donald Trump alleged it was rigged.
- Griffith, along with other conservative figures, spent nine months examining allegations of fraud.
- Their comprehensive analysis, detailed in a 72-page report titled "Lost, Not Stolen," concluded that Joe Biden legitimately won the election.
SALT LAKE CITY — Election Day is less than a month away. Nearly 2 million Americans have already cast their ballots. And yet, the 2020 election — and who was the rightful winner — is still a point of conflict.
At last week's vice presidential debate, Vance refused to say whether Trump lost in 2020. The next day, Corey Lewandowski, a senior adviser on the Trump campaign, also refused to say. Trump still claims the 2020 election was rigged and frequently suggests that fraud will be the only thing preventing his victory next month, as he did at a rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, this past weekend: "Stop the steal," he said, "because we have a lot of votes. We have plenty of votes."
Trump isn't alone. Over one-third — 39% — of U.S. adults are not confident this year's election will be conducted fairly and accurately, according to a Pew Research Center poll.
When Trump began sowing doubts about the 2020 result, Thomas B. Griffith, a retired federal judge, decided to find out whether he was right. Griffith — a conservative George W. Bush appointee — was concerned.
"If, in fact, the claims were true, that fraud had taken place, I can't think of anything more troublesome or worrisome than that," he said.
Griffith decided to recruit a group of fellow conservatives — including two other former judges, two retired U.S. senators and a former U.S. solicitor general — to dive into all of the claims that the 2020 election had been manipulated or stolen. They spent nine months poring over the evidence. In swing states across America, there were claims that voting machines had been compromised and that deceased individuals had cast votes. In Nevada, there were allegations of voter bribery and tampering with absentee ballots; in Arizona, rumors spread about voter-eligibility standards not being enforced.
Griffith's conclusion: "Joe Biden won the election," he said. In fact, they found there was no evidence of fraud sufficient to change the outcome of the election in a single precinct across the country.
Griffith and his team published their findings in a 72-page report, published in 2022, titled "Lost, Not Stolen: The Conservative Case that Trump Lost and Biden Won the 2020 Presidential Election."
As the 2024 election approaches, the report has found newfound importance. "Any political leader who undermines faith and trust in our current election system is doing damage to democracy, because they're diminishing people's trust in the system," said Griffith, who did not reference any leader by name.
Griffith's challenge to those who cast doubt on the election system? "Go look at it, study it," he said. "I spent a year doing the same, and then you come back and tell me, it's not trustworthy. I challenge you."
