---
title: "Judge quashes a Justice Dept. subpoena for 2020 Georgia election workers' data"
description: "A federal judge on Tuesday quashed a Justice Department grand-jury subpoena that sought the names and personal information of Fulton County, Georgia, election workers from 2020, calling the request unreasonable and noting that the window to bring charges over that election had closed. The department said it might appeal."
category: "U.S."
category_url: https://herald.la/category/us
author: "Desmond Clarke"
published: 2026-07-07T22:56:00.000Z
updated: 2026-07-07T22:56:00.000Z
canonical: https://herald.la/article/judge-quashes-a-justice-dept-subpoena-for-2020-georgia-election-workers-data
tags: ["justice-department", "2020-election", "georgia", "fulton-county", "courts"]
---
# Judge quashes a Justice Dept. subpoena for 2020 Georgia election workers' data

A federal judge on Tuesday quashed a Justice Department grand-jury subpoena that sought the names and personal information of Fulton County, Georgia, election workers from 2020, calling the request unreasonable and noting that the window to bring charges over that election had closed. The department said it might appeal.

A federal judge has blocked an attempt by the Justice Department to collect the personal information of people who worked the 2020 election in Fulton County, Georgia, a setback for a department inquiry into how that county handled the vote.

## The ruling

U.S. District Judge William Ray II quashed the subpoena, which had sought the names, addresses and contact information of county employees and volunteer poll workers involved in the 2020 election, [ABC News reported](https://abcnews.com/US/judge-quashes-doj-subpoena-seeking-fulton-county-election/story?id=134562046). In his order, the judge described the request as unreasonable given the burden it would impose and the limited investigative need the government had shown, and he pointed to the expiration of the statute of limitations for any crime tied to the 2020 election, [Atlanta News First reported](https://www.atlantanewsfirst.com/2026/07/07/judge-rejects-justice-department-attempt-get-names-2020-election-workers-fulton-county/).

## The investigation behind it

The subpoena, issued in the spring, grew out of a Justice Department investigation opened earlier this year that has examined, among other things, an alleged failure by Fulton County to preserve electronic ballot images from 2020, [KSAT reported](https://www.ksat.com/news/politics/2026/07/07/judge-rejects-justice-department-attempt-to-get-names-of-2020-election-workers-in-fulton-county/). Fulton County had asked the court to block the demand for its workers' information.

## Both sides

The Justice Department had framed the subpoena as a routine step, arguing that determining whether any charges are warranted is the purpose of an investigation. It indicated it could appeal the decision, [ABC News reported](https://abcnews.com/US/judge-quashes-doj-subpoena-seeking-fulton-county-election/story?id=134562046).

Fulton County officials welcomed the ruling. The chairman of the county's Board of Commissioners, Robb Pitts, said challenges to the county's handling of its elections were baseless, [Atlanta News First reported](https://www.atlantanewsfirst.com/2026/07/07/judge-rejects-justice-department-attempt-get-names-2020-election-workers-fulton-county/).

## Why it matters

The dispute is one front in the continuing legal and political fight over the 2020 election, now playing out through a federal investigation years after the vote. The judge's order does not resolve the underlying inquiry, but it limits, for now, the government's ability to gather information about the individuals who administered that election, an outcome the county cast as a protection for election workers and the department may yet contest on appeal.