In a significant development, Nevada's attorney general, Aaron Ford, has announced charges against six individuals who falsely claimed former President Donald Trump won the state in the 2020 presidential election. These individuals, referred to as "fake electors," now face felony charges for their actions.

The charged individuals include Michael McDonald, Jesse Law, Jim DeGraffenreid, Durward James Hindle III, Shawn Meehan, and Eileen Rice. They are accused of offering a false instrument for filing and uttering a forged document titled "Certificate of the Votes of the 2020 Electors from Nevada" to several government entities. The Nevada attorney general's office stated that their actions aimed to disrupt the results of a free and fair presidential election.

The scheme involving alternate electors, orchestrated by Trump lawyers, relied on former Vice President Mike Pence to certify slates of Trump-supporting electors in battleground states, rather than the officially recognized Electoral College votes cast for Joe Biden. However, Pence ultimately declined to do so on January 6, 2021, the day of the election certification, which resulted in a pro-Trump mob storming the Capitol in protest.

It has been reported that similar attempts by fake electors occurred in other states as well. Allegedly, individuals falsely claimed to be "duly elected" electors in Georgia, Arizona, Michigan, Pennsylvania, New Mexico, and Wisconsin. Currently, ongoing investigations are being conducted in Michigan, New Mexico, and Arizona regarding the involvement of fake electors.

The case in Georgia took a significant turn when three fake electors were charged alongside former President Donald Trump and over a dozen others in a wide-ranging racketeering case that alleged they participated in a criminal enterprise to keep Trump in the White House. Interestingly, a Trump lawyer involved in the Georgia proceedings, Kenneth Chesebro, has reached an agreement with prosecutors and is now cooperating with investigations in Nevada and Arizona.

The planning in Nevada to use an alternate slate of electors started just four days before the election in 2020. One of the charged fake electors, Jim DeGraffenreid, sent a text to other state party officials mentioning that former Nevada Secretary of State Barbara Cegavske would not endorse sending a slate of Republican electors who were not clearly the winners of the popular vote.

Furthermore, details from the months following the 2020 election indicate a potential involvement of former President Trump and his close allies in the ongoing investigation in Nevada. In a significant exchange, DeGraffenreid, a Republican committee member, emailed Trump's attorney Kenneth Chesebro in December 2020, referencing the coordination of Nevada electors' voting on December 14.

The charges brought against these six individuals highlight the seriousness with which authorities consider attempts to undermine the integrity of the electoral process. Attorney General Aaron Ford emphasized his commitment to defending the institutions of the nation and the state, stating that attacks on democracy should not go unchallenged.

As the investigations continue, Nevada's case against these six fake electors may shed further light on the extent of any potential involvement by former President Trump and his associates in undermining the outcome of the 2020 presidential election.