Nevada judge throws out case against six GOP electors in 2020 certificate row

A Nevada judge on Thursday dismissed the long-running criminal case against six Republicans who were accused of submitting a false certificate declaring Donald Trump the winner of the state's 2020 presidential election.

The ruling is the latest in a string of setbacks for efforts in battleground states to prosecute so-called fake electors who sought to keep Trump in office after his loss to Joe Biden. Similar cases have already been dismissed in Michigan and Georgia, and a federal case against Trump over election subversion was dropped in late 2024. A separate fake elector case remains active in Wisconsin.

Nevada Attorney General Aaron Ford, a Democrat now running for governor, had charged the six with forgery and offering a false instrument for filing. The defendants, who pleaded not guilty, included Michael McDonald, chair of the Nevada Republican Party, and Jesse Law, former chair of the Clark County GOP.

After the 2020 election, the group gathered outside the Nevada Legislature to sign a certificate awarding the state's six electoral votes to Trump, even though Biden had won Nevada by more than 30,000 votes. The signing was streamed online, and that footage later became evidence in the case.

The central question was intent. Defense lawyers argued the certificate was "political theater" meant to highlight election concerns and preserve the right to challenge official results, with no intention to deceive any government body. Prosecutors, however, contended the defendants wanted the document to be mistaken for genuine electoral votes that then-Vice President Mike Pence would count on January 6, 2021.

Jurisdiction was also contested, but the case ultimately proceeded in Clark County, which includes Las Vegas and leans Democratic. The attorney general's office has said it plans to appeal the dismissal.