Fulton County, Georgia, has filed a motion in federal court seeking the return of ballots and other original documents from the 2020 presidential election that were seized by the Federal Bureau of Investigation in a Jan. 28 operation at the county’s election facility near Atlanta.

Officials say the motion, filed under federal procedural rules, also asks the judge to unseal the affidavit used to obtain the search warrant, which remains under seal and has not been publicly disclosed.

Fulton County Commission Chair Robb Pitts said county leaders were not given advance notice of the search and have not been provided details about where the materials are being held or why they were taken.

County attorneys are challenging the seizure as exceeding the authorised scope of prior orders and risking the integrity and chain of custody of the original ballots, voter rolls, tabulator tapes and electronic ballot images removed during the raid.

The FBI action followed a criminal warrant issued by a federal magistrate judge and forms part of a broader inquiry into the preservation of election records; however, federal authorities have declined to comment on the specifics of the ongoing investigation.

The seizure has drawn intense political scrutiny amid renewed debate over the 2020 election, with President Donald Trump and his allies continuing to assert, without evidence, that widespread fraud affected the outcome in Georgia.

Fulton County’s legal filing underscores local officials’ insistence that their election procedures have operated securely and lawfully in subsequent elections and seeks judicial intervention to ensure that control of the original documents returns to the county’s custody.

The motion asks the court to prevent further use or review of the seized materials while the case progresses, emphasising the constitutional and public trust dimensions of the dispute.