Ginni Thomas Pressured Second State on Election

Emails show justice's wife called for rejecting Biden's victory and replacing electors in 2 states
By Bob Cronin,  Newser Staff
Posted Sep 1, 2022 3:56 PM CDT
Ginni Thomas Also Lobbied Wisconsin on Electors
Virginia Thomas, wife of Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas, attends the swearing-in of Amy Coney Barrett on the South Lawn of the White House in October 2020.   (AP Photo/Patrick Semansky, File)

Emails show that the wife of Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas pressured legislators in Wisconsin to throw out President Biden's 2020 election victory there—just as she had Arizona lawmakers. Ginni Thomas' emails to Arizona on Nov. 9 were reported in June, but the Wisconsin lobbying wasn't known until now, the Washington Post reports. The Post and CBS News obtained copies of the emails under public records laws and from a watchdog group. They show that Thomas sent messages with the same wording at the same time, urging the legislators to replace their state's electors. "Please stand strong in the face of media and political pressure," the emails from Thomas say.

The Wisconsin emails were sent to state Sen. Kathy Bernier, who chaired the Senate elections committee, and state Rep. Gary Tauchen, both Republicans. Bernier told the Post that she hadn't realized one of the many emails she received about the election was from Thomas and added that Thomas "has a First Amendment right to speak her mind." She said the legislature could have looked into decertifying the presidential election results if evidence had been found of widespread voter fraud. "But as we went through the process and the legal challenges were made and discounted by the judicial system, there was nothing proven as far as actual voter fraud," Bernier said.

Ginni Thomas, her lawyer, a spokesperson for the US Supreme Court, and the two Wisconsin lawmakers did not immediately comment on the emails, per the Hill. The House committee investigating the Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol asked Ginni Thomas to voluntarily appear for an interview in June. She expressed eagerness, but her lawyer later reversed course. Members of the committee have said it's considering issuing a subpoena. (More Virginia Thomas stories.)

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