Former President Donald Trump’s chief of staff, Mark Meadows, has been indicted by an Arizona grand jury in connection with efforts to overturn the 2020 election using a fake slate of electors from the state. Meadows is among 18 individuals charged, although his name is redacted in the indictment. Trump himself is not facing any charges and is referred to as “Unindicted Coconspirator 1” in the indictment.
The indictment, dated Tuesday and shared on social media by a Politico reporter, reveals Meadows as one of the defendants whose name is redacted. The charges against the group include conspiracy, fraudulent schemes and artifices, fraudulent schemes and practices, and forgery. While the full extent of the allegations against Meadows is not immediately clear due to the redaction, this is the second case in which he is accused of attempting to overturn the 2020 election. The other case is in Georgia, where he faces charges of racketeering and solicitation of violation of oath of a public officer.
Meadows has defended himself, stating that the actions he is accused of were within the scope of his job as chief of staff. The latest indictment outlines how individuals close to Trump collaborated with a fake group of electors from Arizona to undermine the election results, despite President Joe Biden winning by over 10,000 votes in the state.
The indictment emphasizes that the scheme would have deprived Arizonans of their right to vote and have their votes counted. Among the indicted individuals are 11 people referred to as the “Arizona Fake Electors,” who are accused of falsely declaring Trump and Pence as the winners of the 2020 election in Arizona, disregarding voter intent. The other seven individuals, including Meadows, have had their names redacted from the indictment, but sources have identified them as Rudy Giuliani, Jenna Ellis, John Eastman, Christina Bob, Boris Epshteyn, and Mike Roman, who served as Trump’s campaign adviser and former campaign aide, respectively.
Meadows is specifically alleged to have collaborated “with members of the Trump campaign to coordinate and implement the false Republican electors’ votes in Arizona and six other states.” The indictment further accuses him of being involved in multiple efforts to keep Trump in power, despite his loss in the election.
Prior to his role in the Trump administration, Meadows represented North Carolina’s 11th Congressional District. He was succeeded by former Representative Madison Cawthorn, who lost his reelection bid in 2022 to Representative Chuck Edwards.
1 Response
This situation is like a game of chess where Mark Meadows is the player trying to cheat by replacing the legitimate chess pieces with fake ones. The indictment is like the referee catching him in the act and penalizing him for his dishonest tactics.