Georgia secretary of state says wife has received threatening texts about recount

Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger (R) said his wife has received threatening text messages about the ongoing recount of the state’s votes in the presidential election. 

Text messages sent to his wife and obtained by Fox 5 Atlanta reveal personal threats against Raffensperger and his wife, which he said came from members of his own party. 

One text message read, “You better not botch this recount. Your life depends on it.” Another said, “Your husband deserves to face a firing squad.”

A third text aimed at the couple read, “The Raffenspergers should be put on trial for treason and face execution.”

Threat sent to ⁦@GaSecofState⁩’s wife. He fears it was sent by someone in his own #GOP party. Hand recount in #Georgia nearing completion. He told me votes counted so far are tracking toward a Joe Biden win. Biden’s lead has been whittled down. #Election2020results pic.twitter.com/hrFMW5YzbK

— Dale Russell (@DaleRussellFox5) November 18, 2020

President-elect Joe Biden was projected the winner of the 2020 election more than a week ago, on Nov. 7, after winning Pennsylvania’s 20 electoral votes. 

Biden then clinched Georgia last week by less than a percentage point over President Trump. However, such a thin margin prompted a by-hand recount in the Peach State. 

Despite the projection for Biden, Trump has refused to concede the election and has mounted legal battles in states such as Georgia challenging the results. The president, his campaign and his allies have alleged widespread voter fraud that was caused by mail-in ballots. 

Raffensperger says he has been pressured by Republicans over his handling of the 2020 election.

The Peach State’s top election official declined to blame the president for casting doubt on the election results. However, in an exclusive interview with The Hill, Raffensperger said that Rep. Doug Collins (R-Ga.) and other GOP politicians were creating a dangerous environment — including the threats of violence — because he has disputed the president’s claims of systemic voter fraud without evidence. 

“There’s just people who are really angry and they’re being spun up,” Raffensperger said. “It’s really the spinners that should be ashamed for playing with people’s emotions. Politicians of both sides should never play with people’s emotions. It’s one thing to motivate people, I get that. But to spin people up and play with their emotions, it’s emotional abuse and they ought to grow up and start acting with integrity.”

Raffensperger announced the recount last Wednesday. So far, it has found more than 2,600 ballots in Floyd County that weren’t previously included.

The recount has also uncovered nearly 2,800 votes on a memory card in Fayette County that were not counted, Fox 5 Atlanta reported on Tuesday. 

Raffensperger told the news outlet that the hand recount is mostly matching the computer count and that Biden is on track to win the state. Biden now leads Trump by just under 13,000 votes in the Peach State.