President Trump has granted a pardon to Tina Peters, a former Colorado county clerk serving a nine-year sentence for allowing unauthorized access to voting machines. The pardon is unusual because the president's power to grant pardons only applies to federal crimes, not state-level offenses.
Peters was convicted by an elected Republican district attorney and sentenced in October 2024 on seven charges, including three counts of attempting to influence a public servant and one count of conspiracy to commit criminal impersonation. Prosecutors alleged that Peters and others devised a deceptive scheme to cause an unauthorized person to access Mesa County voting machines.
Trump has long claimed that the 2020 presidential election was rigged due to voter fraud, a claim promoted by Peters. However, there is no evidence to support this claim. Colorado Secretary of State Jena Griswold stated that the pardon is "an outrageous departure from what our constitution requires" and would be "a grave threat to democracy."
The pardon has sparked controversy, with Democratic Gov. Jared Polis saying that "no president has jurisdiction over state law nor the power to pardon a person for state convictions." A federal magistrate judge previously rejected Peters' request to be released while appealing her conviction.
Trump's interest in Peters' case is not unprecedented. The president granted pardons last month to dozens of people accused in state court of trying to overturn his 2020 election loss, including "alternate state electors" and former personal lawyer Rudy Giuliani.
The pardon has raised questions about the limits of presidential power and the relationship between the federal government and individual states. As one attorney argued, Trump may have the power to grant pardons for state crimes under a theory that was not raised in any court. However, this interpretation is highly disputed.
Peters was convicted by an elected Republican district attorney and sentenced in October 2024 on seven charges, including three counts of attempting to influence a public servant and one count of conspiracy to commit criminal impersonation. Prosecutors alleged that Peters and others devised a deceptive scheme to cause an unauthorized person to access Mesa County voting machines.
Trump has long claimed that the 2020 presidential election was rigged due to voter fraud, a claim promoted by Peters. However, there is no evidence to support this claim. Colorado Secretary of State Jena Griswold stated that the pardon is "an outrageous departure from what our constitution requires" and would be "a grave threat to democracy."
The pardon has sparked controversy, with Democratic Gov. Jared Polis saying that "no president has jurisdiction over state law nor the power to pardon a person for state convictions." A federal magistrate judge previously rejected Peters' request to be released while appealing her conviction.
Trump's interest in Peters' case is not unprecedented. The president granted pardons last month to dozens of people accused in state court of trying to overturn his 2020 election loss, including "alternate state electors" and former personal lawyer Rudy Giuliani.
The pardon has raised questions about the limits of presidential power and the relationship between the federal government and individual states. As one attorney argued, Trump may have the power to grant pardons for state crimes under a theory that was not raised in any court. However, this interpretation is highly disputed.
. I mean, President Trump thinks he can just grant pardons for anything? Like, what's next? Pardoning your ex-wife or something 
? And it's not like this one guy wasn't convicted of a crime. Nine years in the slammer isn't exactly a walk in the park 
.
. You can't just make up rules as you go along. This is some serious "king of the castle" stuff 
.
I get it, she wants to protect democracy and all, but can't she just let the system play out?
. It's like he thinks he's above the law or something... 