Pam Travis ron johnson

fake electors:

defendants include all 10 of the Republicans who acted as electors: Andrew Hitt; Robert Spindell; Bill Feehan; Kelly Ruh; Carol Brunner; Scott Grabins; Kathy Kiernan; Darryl Carlson; Pam Travis; and Mary Buestrin.

PARDON

lifezette

Trump Grants Sweeping Pardons to Dozens Targeted After 2020 Election [WATCH]

By LifeZette News Staff

November 10, 2025

Image Credit: Brian Jason - Shutterstock.com

ShareTweetShareCommentPrint

President Donald Trump has issued a broad pardon proclamation extending clemency to dozens of allies who faced prosecution over efforts to challenge the results of the 2020 presidential election.

The order, signed and released by the White House, declares the pardons part of an effort to correct what the president called a “grave national injustice” and move toward “national reconciliation.”

“This proclamation ends a grave national injustice perpetrated upon the American people following the 2020 presidential election and continues the process of national reconciliation,” the document reads.

MORE NEWS: British Artist Depicts Trump as Executed Prisoner in Swiss Display [WATCH]

The proclamation grants “a full, complete and unconditional pardon to all United States citizens for conduct relating to the advice, creation, organization, execution, submission, support, voting activities, participation in, or advocacy for or of any slate or proposed slate of presidential electors, whether or not recognized by any state or state official in connection with the 2020 presidential election, as well as for any conduct relating to their efforts to expose voting fraud and vulnerabilities in the 2020 presidential election.”

Among those named are several high-profile figures who became central to post-election investigations, including Rudy Giuliani, Trump’s former personal attorney and former mayor of New York; John Eastman, one of Trump’s lawyers involved in election-related legal strategies; and Tyler Bowyer, a senior member of Turning Point USA.

This Could Be the Most Important Video Gun Owners Watch All Year

Do you think Jimmy Kimmel's apology about his comments about Charlie Kirk was sincere?

Yes

Email Address (required)

By completing the poll, you agree to receive emails from LifeZette, occasional offers from our partners and that you've read and agree to our privacy policy and legal statement.

Results

Vote

In total, the list includes more than 70 individuals. The names listed in the document include Mark Amick, Kathy Berden, Christina Bobb, Joseph Brannan, Carol Brunner, Mary Buestrin, Darryl Carlson, James “Ken” Carroll, Brad Carver, Robert Cheeley, Kenneth Chesebro, Hank Choate, Jeffrey Clark, Vikki Consiglio, Nancy Cottle, James DeGraffenreid, John Downey, Jenna Ellis, Boris Epshteyn, Amy Facchinello, Bill Feehan, Carolyn Fisher, Harrison Floyd, Clifford Frost, Kay Godwin, Edward Scott Grabins, Stanley Grot, John Haggard, Scott Hall, Misty Hampton, David G. Hanna, Mark Hennessy, Mari-Ann Henry, Durward James Hindle III, Andrew Hitt, Jake Hoffman, Burt Jones, Anthony T. Kern, Kathy Kiernen, Timothy King, Trevian Kutti, James Lamon, Cathleen Latham, Jesse Law, Stephen Lee, Michele Lundgren, Meshawn Maddock, Michael McDonald, Mark Meadows, Shawn Meehan, Robert Montgomery, Daryl Moody, Samuel I. Moorhead, Loraine Pellegrino, Sidney Powell, James Renner, Eileen Rice, Mayra Rodriguez, Mike Roman, Rose Rook, Kelly Ruh, Greg Safsten, David Shafer, Marian Sheridan, Ray Stallings Smith III, Robert F. Spindell Jr., Shawn Still, Ken Thompson, Pam Travis, James Troupis, Kent Vanderwood, Kelli Ward, Michael Ward, and C.B. Yadav.

The proclamation notes that the pardon applies only to those whose conduct was directly related to post-election challenges or alternate elector efforts, as well as activities tied to investigating or exposing alleged voting irregularities.

In a statement posted to X, Bowyer expressed gratitude toward President Trump and others who supported those charged in connection with the post-election cases.

“I am very grateful for the support of the President and his pardon attorney Ed Martin, and the many who have looked out for us since this expensive injustice has taken place in the swing states,” he wrote.

“We were targeted to sideline many of us politically. It has nearly bankrupted and caused severe trauma to many good people on this list—this is why it is important to get to the bottom of what was carried out against good faith and active citizens who took to the courts to ask questions about the 2020 election.”

MORE NEWS: Schumer Loses Grip as Eight Democrats Join GOP to Reopen Government [WATCH]

While the proclamation offers comprehensive relief for those prosecuted or investigated, it explicitly excludes President Trump himself.

00:22 / 00:46

“This pardon does not apply to the President of the United States, Donald J. Trump,” the document states.

That clarification ensures that any ongoing or future legal proceedings involving the president personally are not affected by the order.

MORE NEWS: Billy Bob Thornton Tells Hollywood Elites to ‘Accept Your Little Award and Fk Off’ [WATCH]

The move, however, effectively brings to a close years of prosecutions, investigations, and civil actions targeting individuals tied to Trump’s post-election legal and political efforts.

green bay sweep! fake electors

WISCONSIN (10)

Andrew Hitt*: The chairman of the Republican Party of Wisconsin from 2019 until 2021, Hitt is a partner at consulting and lobbying firm Michael Best Strategies.

Kelly Ruh*: Ruh was an alderperson for De Pere but :{lost her bid for reelection:(style="box-sizing:border-box"):}: in April. She has also been chairwoman of the 8th Congressional District Republican Party and a controller for Bay Industries in Green Bay.

Carol Brunner: Brunner is the vice chairwoman of Wisconsin’s 1st Congressional District Republican Party.

Edward Scott Grabins: Chairman of the Dane County Republican Party, Grabins is a technology professional, according to his LinkedIn profile.

Bill Feehan: A business manager based in La Crosse, Feehan was a 2012 candidate for District 32 of the Wisconsin state Senate.

Robert F. Spindell Jr.: Spindell has been a :{commissioner:(style="box-sizing:border-box"):}: on the Wisconsin Election Commission since 2019 and recently ran to chair the commission and lost. After Biden won the election, Spindell :{appeared at a “stop the steal” rally:(style="box-sizing:border-box"):}: at the state Capitol.

Kathy Kiernan: Kiernan is the 5th Congressional District chairman for the Republican Party of Wisconsin.

Darryl Carlson: Currently executive director of conservative organization No Better Friend Corp., Carlson ran an unsuccessful campaign in 2014 for the Wisconsin State Assembly. He is a veteran and has also represented the 3rd aldermanic district in Sheboygan.

Pam Travis: Travis has served as treasurer of the Wisconsin Federation of Republican Women and is currently the 7th Congressional District vice chairman for the Republican Party of Wisconsin.

Mary Buestrin: A former national committeewoman of the Republican Party of Wisconsin, Buestrin :{says she has done:(style="box-sizing:border-box"):}: volunteer work supporting Republican candidates for more than 50 years.

Slated to appear but replaced:

Tom Schreibel: Schreibel is a partner at consulting and lobbying firm Michael Best Strategies and a national committeeman of the Republican Party of Wisconsin.

===

https://www.wpr.org/democrats-file-lawsuit-against-wisconsin-republicans-who-posed-electors

a group of Democrats is suing the Wisconsin Republicans who posed as presidential electors following the 2020 election, arguing their actions set the stage for the Jan. 6, 2021 insurrection of the U.S. Capitol and could be replicated in the future if they're not punished.

The lawsuit, filed Tuesday in Dane County Circuit Court, asks a judge to find that 10 Republicans and two attorneys who advised them broke a variety of laws, including one that bans people from falsely acting as public officials.

The lawsuit comes after the bipartisan Wisconsin Elections Commission already rejected a formal complaint against the Republicans, who have argued they were preserving legal options for former President Donald Trump. Additionally, Wisconsin Attorney General Josh Kaul, a Democrat, has declined to charge the false electors.

But Jeff Mandell, the lead attorney bringing the case for Democrats, said there needs to be consequences for the false electors, who were pivotal to Trump's strategy to try to overturn the results of the election on Jan. 6.

"If we do not clearly say, 'This was wrong, this was illegal, this can never happen again,' we are inviting it happening again," Mandell said in an interview with Wisconsin Public Radio. "And especially here in Wisconsin, where we perennially have very close elections, that's a tremendous danger to our democracy."

Republicans named in the lawsuit met at the state Capitol to cast votes for Trump on Dec. 14, 2020, the same day Wisconsin's Democratic electors cast Wisconsin's official electoral votes for President-elect Joe Biden.

Both meetings happened shortly after the Wisconsin Supreme Court rejected the Trump campaign's last remaining lawsuit in Wisconsin seeking to overturn Biden's victory in Wisconsin. Trump and his allies had previously lost several cases challenging election results in both state and federal courts.

Wisconsin's actual electors sent official documents affirming Biden's victory to the president of the U.S. Senate, the Wisconsin secretary of state, the National Archives and the chief judge of the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Wisconsin. The Republicans posing as electors sent their own official-looking documents to the same places.

Mandell, who is lead counsel for the liberal group Law Forward, said his clients would like a judge to issue an order requiring Republicans to correct the historical record.

"So that anyone who was to look at the National Archives or other places where the papers that they fraudulently submitted have been stored would also find a copy of the court order saying that this was illegal," Mandell said. "And we'd like the court to say that none of these folks can ever participate as presidential electors in the state of Wisconsin."

Mandell said Democrats would also ask a judge to assess a fine of up to $2,000 per person for wrongdoing. He said they’re also pursuing punitive damages of up to $200,000 per person.

The state law banning people "from falsely assuming to act as a public officer" states violators are guilty of a felony punishable by up to three and a half years in prison.

The Democratic plaintiffs bringing the lawsuit include Khary Penebaker and Mary Arnold, two of the official electors who cast votes for Biden. They also include Democratic activist Bonnie Joseph.

Hitt was the chair of the Republican Party of Wisconsin at the time. Earlier this year, he was subpoenaed by the U.S. House of Representatives Select Committee to Investigate the January 6th Attack on the United States. Ruh, who was until recently a member of the De Pere Common Council, was also subpoenaed because she was listed as the secretary for the group.

Spindell is one of three Republican appointees to the six-member Wisconsin Elections Commission, where at least some Democrats have called for his removal. Mandell argues Spindell should have been disqualified from voting on the formal complaint against him.

Feehan, the chair of the La Crosse County Republican Party and a former candidate for the state Legislature, is on the leadership committee for former Lt. Gov. Rebecca Kleefisch’s gubernatorial campaign.

Also named as defendants in the lawsuit are attorneys Jim Troupis and Kenneth Chesebro, two attorneys who helped steer the GOP electors strategy for Trump.

Chesebro, a Boston attorney, wrote a memo to Troupis dated Nov. 18, 2020 that was obtained and published earlier this year by The New York Times. Troupis was the lead attorney for the Trump campaign in Wisconsin. The memo, which was written the same day the Trump campaign asked for a partial recount of Wisconsin’s election results, is the earliest document on record outlining the Trump campaign's plan to use "alternate" electors to contest the election.

After the Wisconsin Elections Commission ruled in Republicans' favor in March, Hitt said in an email to The Associated Press that he was grateful for the decision.

"I had no illusions the actions we took as Republican electors ... were going to change the rightful result of the election either in Wisconsin or nationally," Hitt told The AP in March. "We simply gathered on the advice of legal counsel to ensure all options were preserved in case of a court decision favorable to the Trump legal team in ongoing litigation."

In an emailed statement, Paul Farrow, chair of the Republican Party of Wisconsin, called the lawsuit frivolous.

"This frivolous lawsuit from a liberal group is yet another Democrat attempt to resurrect a baseless story from two years ago," Farrow said. "Even the Wisconsin Elections Commission voted unanimously to not sanction anyone. Democrats have tried to use this event to distract from their abysmal record on election reform. It didn’t work then and it won’t work now."

Mandell is formally appealing the Wisconsin Elections Commission’s decision in court. He said that case is more narrowly tailored to state election laws, whereas the latest complaint is more broad.

The Wisconsin Republicans who posed as electors were not alone in 2020.The U.S. House Committee that subpoenaed Hitt and Ruhalso sent subpoenas to false electors in Arizona, Georgia, Michigan, New Mexico, Nevada and Pennsylvania.

no lnx

What To Know About Wisconsin Republicans’ Fake 2020 Electors

Written By

Jonathon SadowskiJONATHON SADOWSKI

Last Updated

FEBRUARY 2, 2022 3:27 PM CST

Originally Published

FEBRUARY 1, 2022

Republicans created fake documents certifying Trump as the winner in 2020. Here’s what you need to know.

In a typical presidential election, the Electoral College serves as little more than a formality as electors from all 50 states cast votes for the candidate who won their state’s popular vote.

But the 2020 presidential election was anything but typical. Republicans in seven states Donald Trump lost, including Wisconsin, convened to fill out official-looking paperwork declaring him—not Joe Biden—the winner. Then, they sent those fake documents to Congress.

Those Republicans’ actions are now under the scrutiny of federal prosecutors after voting rights advocates and Democrats raised the alarm, and two of Wisconsin’s false electors have been subpoenaed by the US House committee investigating the Jan. 6, 2021, insurrection.

“These people got together and tried to take the choice for president away from the people of Wisconsin,” said Mel Barnes, staff counsel with progressive legal firm Law Forward, which provided copies of the fake documents to UpNorthNews.

The false electors were: then-Wisconsin GOP Chair Andrew Hitt, Wisconsin Elections Commissioner Bob Spindell, 8th Congressional District GOP Chair Kelly Ruh, 1st Congressional District GOP Vice Chair Carol Brunner, Midwest Region for the Republican National Committee Vice Chair Mary Buestrin, 6th Congressional District GOP Chair Darryl Carlson, La Crosse County GOP Chair Bill Feehan, Dane Party GOP Chair Scott Grabins, 5th Congressional District GOP Chair Kathy Kiernan, and 1st Congressional District GOP Vice Chair Pam Travis.

RELATED: Jan. 6 Committee Subpoenas Wisconsin Republicans Over False Trump Electors]

Hitt told the Wisconsin State Journal he would comply with the subpoena and that the fake electoral certificates were filled out according to the “guidance of Wisconsin legal counsel.” Trump and his allies filed multiple lawsuits in their efforts to overturn the election, but the fake electors mailed their paperwork after Trump’s efforts had been defeated and the election had been officially settled.

It is unclear if the would-be Republican electors in Wisconsin, Pennsylvania, Michigan, Arizona, Nevada, New Mexico, and Georgia will face criminal charges.

Jan. 6 Committee Chair Rep. Bonnie Thompson (D-Mississippi) said the committee hopes to investigate “the planning and coordination efforts” and find out “who was behind that scheme.” In a December 2020 Fox News interview, former Trump Adviser Stephen Miller laid out the fact that it was a coordinated effort and outlined Trump allies’ plans to install “alternate electors.”

‘This Is Not Something That Happens’

“It is bizarre and completely unusual. This is not something that happens after presidential elections in the United States anymore,” Barry Burden, director of UW-Madison’s Elections Research Center, said of the effort to certify Trump as the winner of the election.

The only other similar occurrence Burden said he is aware of was when Hawaii sent two slates of electors in 1960 during a close recount. Electors initially voted for Richard Nixon before a recount revealed John F. Kennedy was the true winner, causing the then-new state to send a second slate of electors. But the incident in Hawaii was far different; it was not a coordinated effort across seven states to overturn settled election results.

A bipartisan group of senators is in talks to author legislation that would close loopholes in the current system. Until then, Burden said, there is nothing preventing a losing party from attempting a coordinated alternative slate of electors again because federal election law has essentially left certifying elections to “an honor system for the last 150 years.”

“There are real opportunities and incentives, I think, for losing parties to try this strategy again, and they might have success because the law is so poorly written. And because Congress is so partisan, they may be willing to override the facts and go with the losing party,” Burden said.

For now,Wisconsin Attorney General Josh Kaul has declined to prosecute the fake electors, but he said he supports federal action.

“I believe it’s critical that the federal government fully investigates and prosecutes any unlawful actions in furtherance of any seditious conspiracy,” Kaul said in a statement to UpNorthNews.

Hitt is now chair of Republican Adam Jarchow’s campaign for Wisconsin attorney general.Jarchow has already said he would not prosecute the fake electors. Spindell continues to serve on the Wisconsin Elections Commission; Law Forward filed a complaint about the electors with the commission, and Barnes said Spindell should recuse himself from considering the complaint.

“So many of our democratic institutions really rely on people doing the right thing, and Wisconsinites trust people to do the right thing, to do their job, to not be sore losers,” Barnes said. “And what we saw is, that didn’t happen here in Wisconsin. Instead, people who lost the election wanted to reach out and take power anyway.”

ADAM JARCHOW

ANDREW HITT

BARRY BURDEN

BOB SPINDELL

BONNIE THOMPSON

ELECTION 2020

ELECTORS

JAN. 6 INSURRECTION

JOSH KAUL

LAW FORWARD

MARK POCAN

MEL BARNES

UW-MADISON

Jonathon Sadowski

Jonathon Sadowski A Racine native, Jonathon most recently reported for the Racine Journal Times. He has a degree in multimedia journalism from Columbia College Chicago and was a digital news intern for two Chicago stations, WMAQ and WLS-TV.

===