A former Republican elections official buys Dominion Voting, the company that was the focus of false 2020 conspiracy theories.

The newly formed company, Liberty Vote, also pledged to follow the decision Executive order Trump signed last spring seeking Sweeping changes For electoral politics that has been blocked by many judges Violation of the Constitution.

KNOWiNK, a St. Louis-based company that provides electronic poll books that allow election officials to confirm voter information, announced the deal and name change. In a possible reference to Baseless conspiracy theory Which linked Dominion to the late Venezuelan dictator Hugo Chavez, the statement highlighted that the company would become “100% American-owned.”

The ad also quotes KNOWiNK’s owner, former St. Louis Elections Director Scott Leyendecker, pledging to provide “election technology that prioritizes paper-based transparency,” a long-standing demand of election conspiracy theorists. Almost all voting tools in the United States already leave a paper trail.

Dominion’s former CEO confirmed the sale in a one-sentence statement Thursday: “Liberty Vote has acquired Dominion Voting Systems,” John Boles said.

The release from the new company pledges to reintroduce “hand-marked paper ballots” and amend company policies to track Trump’s executive order on voting procedures, which did not take effect because judges ruled that Trump does not have the power To assign them. Part of the president’s order sought to ban voting equipment that produces a paper trail containing a “bar code or QR code” — equipment currently in use in hundreds of counties Across 19 states.

Dominion, based in Denver, has been at the center of some of the most colorful conspiracy theories around Trump’s loss to Democrat Joe Biden In the 2020 election. These false claims sparked a number of defamation lawsuits against conservative-leaning media outlets and allies of the president, including a settlement in 2023 in which Fox News agreed to pay Dominion $787 million And one this year that Newsmax settled for $67 million.

The new company’s announcement did not reveal the cost of the deal, but a spokesman said that all the money was provided by Leyendecker. Both companies in question are privately owned.

The false allegations against Dominion have made its brand toxic in many Republican-leaning states and counties. But voting machine companies are typically wary about making overt political statements, given that the market for their equipment is split between places controlled by Republicans and Democrats.

Liberty Vote’s statements say it would align with Trump’s executive order, which has been challenged Prosecutors of a democratic statethe Democratic National Committee And a range of voting and civil rights groups, could lead to concerns in Blue states Which is currently using Dominion equipment.

But some election officials said Thursday that KNOWiNK appears to be avoiding that Conspiracy theories 2020 It acted as a model nonpartisan company.

“They have a good reputation in this area,” said Stephen Richer, a Republican who was targeted by Trump and his allies when he served as chief elections official in Arizona’s Maricopa County, which includes Phoenix.

Despite years of detailed debunking of Dominion conspiracy theories, Trump did just that I kept repeating it Even as recently as a few weeks ago, when… He pledged to get rid of voting machines. The president does not have the power to do so because the Constitution gives states and Congress the power to set election and voting rules.

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