Counting Dead Georgia Voters Takes Center Stage in Eastman Trial

A leader of a Georgia citizens group doubled down on allegations of election fraud while appearing as a defense witness in Trump attorney John Eastman’s California ethics trial.

Garland Favorito, co-founder of Voters Organized for Trusted Election Results in Georgia, or VoterGA, spoke of defective voting machines and dead voters while declining to answer direct questions about the accuracy of methods used to assert his claims.

Favorito testified as a defense witness Thursday after the court denied defense motions to name him an expert, which he said affected his ability to respond to questions about the accurate way to compare voter rolls to determine whether ballots were cast in dead people’s name.

The claims about dead people voting and against Dominion Voting Systems machines are part of the 11-count notice of discipline against Eastman. The former Chapman University Law dean is accused of violating ethical and statutory obligations in his role post-election that culminated in the Jan. 6 raid on the US Capitol. The state bar seeks to have Eastman disbarred.

Eastman, at the Jan. 6 rally in the Ellipse of the National Mall preceding the raid, said dead people voted and Dominion electronic voting machines had fraudulently manipulated the election results, according to the charge and a video of Eastman at the event entered as evidence.

Eastman authored two memos to campaign officials for then-President Donald Trump outlining potential scenarios where slates of electors could be rejected, including unproven allegations of election misconduct and fraud.

Counting the Dead

Favorito resisted Thursday responding to whether a methodology VoterGA used to tout the alleged number of dead people who voted in Georgia was accurate. The question was whether using first and last names, addresses, and birth dates, which is what the state used, was more reliable than using first and last name and birth year, the method VoterGA cited, in matching voters with the list of deceased individuals.

“You have for a day and a half, almost two days now, given testimony about a myriad of things, allegations and statements that are based upon your understanding,” State Bar Court Judge Yvette Roland said to Favorito. “Which matching format is more reliable?”

After continued back and forth in which Favorito said he’s being asked as an expert and responding, “I’m sorry, are you asking me a question?” he didn’t answer Roland’s question.

VoterGA said that the “actual evidence shows that at least 873 people received credit for voting in the November 2020 election although they had died in 2020 prior to Election Day.” That was to refute a letter to Congress that Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger (R) sent disputing election claims.

Those figures came from Bryan Geels, Favorito said. Geels is an accountant whose claims of election anomalies was used by those who dispute the outcome of the 2020 race in which Trump lost to President Joe Biden.

Earlier in Thursday, Eastman’s attorney Randall Miller asked Favorito about his personal knowledge regarding claims of alleged Dominion voting machine vulnerabilities. “I know that from 40 years of information technology and experience,” Favorito said.

Roland proceeded to “remind everyone that Mr. Favorito has not been qualified as an expert.”

During testimony Thursday, Favorito couldn’t recall when Eastman reached out to him to ask about confirming some evidence when the Georgian volunteered to come to California and testify. He said he didn’t know if it was this year, before the bar’s charges against Eastman were filed Jan. 26, or in the winter or spring.

“You recall a lot of other things,” said Roland. “It’s very interesting that you don’t recall” this.

Trial Continues

VoterGA called Aug. 29 for impeaching Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis for prosecutorial misconduct in the indictment of Eastman, Trump, and 17 others on racketeering charges.

Favorito returns for continued cross examination on Friday when John Yoo also returns to the stand. Yoo, the onetime US Justice Department lawyer who gained notoriety for a memo he authored widely seen as justifying the use of torture when interrogating terrorism suspects, is a defense witness for Eastman. The conservative University of California Berkeley Law professor is scheduled to testify after Favorito.

Testimony in the trial has continued intermittently since June, with extra trial days added three times. More testimony is scheduled Sept. 26-29, with dates in October penciled in to the schedule.

The Office of Chief Trial Counsel represents the bar. Miller Law Associates represents Eastman.

The case is In Re Eastman, Cal. State Bar, No. SBC-23-O-30029, hearing 9/14/23.