Attorneys for Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) said on Wednesday that the lawmaker plans to go to court and challenge a subpoena he received from a special grand jury in Fulton County, Georgia, that is investigating election interference by former President Donald Trump and people close to him.
In a statement, attorneys Bart Daniel and Matt Austin said they were told by Fulton County investigators that Graham is "neither a subject nor target of the investigation, simply a witness. This is all politics."
Court filings state that in the wake of the 2020 presidential election, Graham called Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger (R) and his staff on two occasions and asked about "re-examining certain absentee ballots cast in Georgia in order to explore the possibility of a more favorable outcome for President Donald Trump." The filings also say Graham brought up baseless claims of widespread voter fraud. Graham's attorneys said because their client was chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee at the time, he was "well within his right to discuss with state officials the processes and procedures around administering elections."
Graham was one of seven Trump allies who received subpoenas on Tuesday from the special grand jury, which first began meeting in May and will determine whether any state laws were broken and criminal charges should be filed. Fulton County Deputy District Attorney Jeff DiSantis said on Wednesday that if any witnesses "choose to challenge an order that they testify before the special purpose grand jury, the district attorney will respond in the appropriate court to compel their appearance."