Overview
- On Thursday, Aug. 13, 2026, Clark County District Judge Mary Kay Holthus dismissed criminal counts of forgery and offering a false instrument against six Nevada Republicans.
- Holthus wrote that prosecutors had not proven the essential elements of the charges, focusing on the lack of evidence that the defendants intended the certificate to be treated as official electoral votes.
- The defendants include Nevada GOP Chair Michael McDonald and former Clark County chair Jesse Law, who said the post-2020 certificate was political theater meant to preserve legal challenges.
- Nevada Attorney General Aaron Ford brought the case and said his office will appeal the ruling; Ford is also running for governor, a fact cited in coverage as political context.
- The dismissal follows similar rulings in other states and leaves a patchwork of outcomes for post-2020 fake-elector prosecutions, with a case in Wisconsin still active and appeals or refilings possible elsewhere.