THE GEORGIA RICO CASE
A recorded crime. 19 defendants. 4 guilty pleas. Then a dismissal.
Sources: Fulton County Grand Jury Indictment · Guilty Plea Transcripts · Raffensperger Call Recording · Court Filings
I just want to find 11,780 votes, which is one more than we have, because we won the state.— Donald Trump — recorded phone call to Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger, January 2, 2021
On January 2, 2021, Donald Trump called Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger and asked him to "find 11,780 votes, which is one more than we have, because we won the state." The call was recorded. Biden had won Georgia by 11,779 votes, a margin confirmed by three separate counts including a full hand recount. Raffensperger told Trump: "We don't agree that you have won."
That recorded call became the centerpiece of the most sweeping criminal case ever brought against a former president. Fulton County DA Fani Willis used Georgia's RICO statute to allege that Trump and 18 co-defendants operated as a criminal enterprise to overturn the state's election results. The indictment identified 161 predicate criminal acts. Four co-defendants pleaded guilty, including three Trump attorneys who admitted under oath that their efforts to challenge the election were based on false claims. Those guilty pleas still stand even after the case was dismissed.
"I just want to find 11,780 votes, which is one more than we have, because we won the state.
— Donald Trump — Recorded phone call to Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger, January 2, 2021
The Criminal
Enterprise
Fulton County DA Fani Willis alleged that Trump and 18 co-defendants operated as a criminal enterprise to overturn Georgia's 2020 election results — using Georgia's RICO (Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations) statute.
• Public corruption — Atlanta city officials, school cheating scandals
• Street gangs — including cases against Young Thug and YSL
• Corporate fraud — organized financial schemes
The statute has been used in over 100 cases involving political corruption in Georgia.
• The Raffensperger call — pressuring the Secretary of State to "find" votes
• The fake electors scheme in Georgia
• Harassment of election workers Ruby Freeman and Shaye Moss
• Unauthorized access to voting equipment in Coffee County
• False statements to state officials and courts
• Soliciting public officers to violate their oaths
The indictment identified 161 predicate acts forming the pattern of racketeering.
The Recorded
Call
Four days before January 6, Trump called Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger in a one-hour call that was recorded and published in full by the Washington Post.
In Trump's
Own Words
These are direct quotes from the recorded conversation between the President of the United States and Georgia's Secretary of State.
I just want to find 11,780 votes, which is one more than we have, because we won the state.
There's nothing wrong with saying, you know, um, that you've recalculated.
That's a criminal, that's a criminal offense. And you can't let that happen. That's a big risk to you and to Ryan, your lawyer.
We don't agree that you have won.
They Admitted
What They Did
Four of Trump's co-defendants entered guilty pleas before the case was dismissed — admitting in court to participating in the scheme. These pleas cannot be undone.
In Their
Own Words
These are Trump's own lawyers and allies, admitting under oath that what they did was wrong.
If I knew then what I know now, I would have declined to represent Donald Trump in these post-election challenges... I look back on this full experience with deep remorse.
[Admitted to creating and distributing] false Electoral College documents working 'in coordination with' the Trump campaign.
[Admitted he] conspired to put forward fake GOP electors in Georgia with Trump, Giuliani, and Eastman.
I entered a guilty plea on a charge of conspiring to commit intentional interference with performance of election duties. I apologize to the people of the state of Georgia.
What Happened
to the Case
The Georgia RICO case was ultimately dismissed — but not because the evidence was weak.
Judge Scott McAfee found a conflict of interest and gave Willis a choice: remove Wade or be disqualified. Wade resigned in March 2024, initially allowing Willis to stay.
A replacement prosecutor was appointed to decide whether to continue the case.
Trump subsequently pardoned 77 individuals involved in the fake electors scheme at the federal level in November 2025 — though presidential pardons apply only to federal offenses, not state charges.
Every Talking
Point, Tested
The most common arguments used to dismiss the Georgia RICO case.
"The case was thrown out because Willis was corrupt."
Willis was disqualified for an appearance of impropriety related to her personal relationship with Special Prosecutor Wade. This is a real problem — and it's fair to criticize.
But Willis's personal conduct has nothing to do with the evidence. The evidence included:
- A recorded phone call in which Trump asked Raffensperger to "find" votes
- Four guilty pleas from co-defendants who admitted to participating in the scheme
- Surveillance footage from Coffee County showing unauthorized access to voting equipment
- Fake elector certificates submitted to Congress and the National Archives
The dismissal removed the prosecutor. It did not remove the evidence. The recorded call still exists. The guilty pleas still stand.
"The Raffensperger call was perfect — he was just asking questions."
The full call is publicly available. Here is what Trump said — not excerpted, not out of context:
- "I just want to find 11,780 votes" — the exact number needed to overturn Georgia's result
- "There's nothing wrong with saying, you know, um, that you've recalculated" — asking Raffensperger to announce a different result without basis
- "That's a criminal, that's a criminal offense. And you can't let that happen. That's a big risk to you and to Ryan, your lawyer" — directly threatening Raffensperger with criminal prosecution
- "You should want to have an accurate election. And you're a Republican" — appealing to partisan loyalty over duty
Raffensperger — a Republican — refused every request. He later testified he interpreted Trump's comments as a "threat" and said: "I understood the positional power that the President of the United States of America has."
This was not "asking questions." It was a one-hour pressure campaign on a state official to change election results — while directly threatening him with criminal consequences for refusing.
"RICO is overreach — it was designed for the mob, not politics."
Federal RICO was designed for organized crime. Georgia's RICO statute is intentionally broader — it applies to any pattern of racketeering activity conducted through an enterprise, regardless of the type of enterprise.
Georgia's RICO statute has been used extensively in non-mob contexts:
- Atlanta Public Schools cheating scandal (2015) — 11 educators convicted of racketeering for coordinating a cheating scheme on standardized tests
- Atlanta city corruption cases — public officials prosecuted for coordinated bribery schemes
- Young Thug / YSL case (2023-2024) — gang prosecution using the same statute
The statute has been used in over 100 political corruption cases in Georgia. Using RICO to prosecute an alleged coordinated scheme involving 19 defendants acting across multiple states is exactly what RICO was designed for — coordinated criminal activity that no single charge can capture.
"The guilty pleas were coerced — they just wanted to avoid trial."
Guilty pleas in American courts are entered voluntarily, under oath, before a judge who is required to confirm the defendant understands what they are admitting. Judges specifically ask whether the plea is being made freely and whether any threats or coercion were involved.
Each defendant made specific admissions:
- Jenna Ellis: "I look back on this full experience with deep remorse" — describing her own role with apparent genuine reflection, not coercion
- Sidney Powell: Admitted creating and distributing false Electoral College documents "in coordination with" the Trump campaign
- Kenneth Chesebro: Admitted conspiring to submit fake elector certificates — admitting the documents were false
- Scott Hall: Apologized "to the people of the state of Georgia" for his role in breaching voting equipment
Plea deals involve legal calculation — defendants weigh the evidence against them and make strategic decisions. That is not coercion. That is the justice system working exactly as designed.
If the evidence against them was weak, they would have gone to trial. They pleaded guilty because the evidence — including the recorded call, the fake certificates, and the surveillance footage — was strong enough that trial was a worse option.
A one-hour phone call asking Georgia's Secretary of State to 'find' votes. Four guilty pleas admitting participation in the scheme. Fake elector certificates submitted to Congress. The case was dismissed because of prosecutorial misconduct — not because the evidence was insufficient.