Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard visited Fulton County's main elections hub in Georgia on Wednesday while on official business, the same day the FBI executed a court-authorized search at the facility, NBC News reported.
Gabbard was photographed outside the elections center in Union City, which later became the site of an FBI search tied to investigations related to the 2020 presidential election.
The administration said Gabbard was at the facility as part of her role overseeing election security and safeguarding voting systems.
"Director Gabbard has a pivotal role in election security and protecting the integrity of our elections against interference, including operations targeting voting systems, databases, and election infrastructure," a senior administration official told NBC News.
The official added that Gabbard is carrying out President Donald Trump's directive to strengthen election security in coordination with federal and interagency partners.
Her presence at the elections hub drew criticism from Sen. Mark Warner, D-Va., the vice chairman of the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence, who accused Gabbard of a "breach of trust."
Warner said that either Gabbard failed to properly brief Congress on a legitimate national security concern or improperly involved the intelligence community in what he characterized as a political matter. He assailed either scenario in a post on X.
He added in another post, "Either is a serious breach of trust that further underscores why she is totally unqualified to hold a position that demands sound judgment, apolitical independence, and a singular focus on keeping Americans safe."
The FBI search took place at the Fulton County Election Hub and Operations Center, which opened in 2023 to centralize election operations. The facility houses the county's Elections Department in a complex spanning more than 261,000 square feet.
An FBI spokesperson told The Associated Press that agents were "executing a court-authorized law enforcement action" but declined to provide further details, citing the ongoing investigation. Officials have not disclosed what records or materials were sought or whether any items were seized.
A law enforcement official familiar with the matter said the search is connected to federal probes related to the 2020 election.
The FBI action comes amid continued scrutiny of election procedures following the 2020 contest, in which Trump lost to Democrat Joe Biden. Trump and his supporters have long argued that irregularities affected the outcome in key states, including Georgia.
Speaking last week at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, Trump repeated his claim that the 2020 election was "rigged" and said that "people will soon be prosecuted for what they did."
Mark Swanson ✉
Mark Swanson, a Newsmax writer and editor, has nearly three decades of experience covering news, culture and politics.
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