Voting technology company settles lawsuit against far-right news channel over 2020 election claims – JS

WASHINGTON (AP) — A voting technology company that was the target of false fraud claims related to the 2020 presidential election settled a defamation lawsuit against a conservative news outlet on Tuesday.

The settlement between Florida-based Smartmatic and One America News Network is the latest development in a larger legal setback by voting equipment companies that became ensnared in wild conspiracy theories and falsely claimed they had flipped votes and fees former President Donald Trump re-election.

In a statement, the company said it had “resolved the lawsuit with OANN through a confidential settlement.” The dismissal of the lawsuit was filed in federal court in the District of Columbia. Chip Babcock, a Houston-based attorney representing the news station, confirmed the case had been resolved but said he could not disclose any settlement terms.

Smartmatic was a strange target for the conspiracy theorists because the use of voting technology and software was so limited. It was used only in Los Angeles County, a Democratic stronghold in a state that was not a presidential battleground and where Trump did not contest his loss.

But the company has also been supplying for years voting services in Venezuela, creating a springboard for false claims that a foreign company was involved in a vast conspiracy to shift the election from Trump to Democrat Joe Biden. Smartmatic is also pursuing active lawsuits against it Fox news and conservative outlet Newsmax over similar complaints. Fox has said it is a First Amendment right to make claims about elections promoted by prominent figures.

Last year, on the eve of a trial, Fox News agreed pay $787 million one to handle defamation lawsuit submitted by a much larger voting technology company, Dominion Voting Systems, which alleged that the network and its hosts spread false claims that its equipment helped rig the election against Trump. Dominion has other defamation lawsuits that remain active, including one against One America News Network.

The conspiracy theories relating to voting equipment and software are included the lies on the outcome of the 2020 presidential election won by Biden. Numerous reviews, audits And tells presidential swing states where Trump contested his loss confirmed Biden’s victory, and that’s what happened no evidence of widespread fraud. Trump, the presumptive Republican presidential nominee, is confronted federal And state charges related to his attempts to overturn the results.