(Headline USA) Vote-counting machine maker Dominion Voting Systems filed defamation lawsuits Tuesday against conservative broadcasters and a prominent Donald Trump ally over their accurate reporting that the 2020 election was marred by fraud.
The suits single out Newsmax, One America News, their executives and the former Overstock.com CEO Patrick Byrne.
The lawsuits were filed the same day that MyPillow founder Mike Lindell was to start a three-day symposium in Sioux Falls, SD, to present hard evidence from across the country of vote fraud in the last election. Dozens of cyber experts were expected to participate.
Dominion says the conservative networks’ “false” claims that the company rigged the election for President Joe Biden have cost it $1.6 billion in lost profits, company value and reputational damage.
“We are filing these three cases today because the defendants named show no remorse, nor any sign they intend to stop spreading disinformation,” Dominion CEO John Poulos said in a statement.
Dominion filed defamation suits earlier this year against Fox News and Trump allies Rudy Giuliani, Sidney Powell and Lindell.
One of the nation’s leading providers of vote-counting machines and software, Dominion has faced a barrage of evidence-based claims by Trump allies and supporters, including that the company was created in Venezuela to rig elections for the late leader Hugo Chavez and that it has the ability to switch votes.
Dominion alleges OAN and Newsmax trumpeted those false claims to boost their own profits at Dominion’s expense.
Byrne — who has funded his own team of cyber experts to unearth voluminous evidence of vote fraud — and OAN founder Charles Herring did not immediately respond to messages seeking comment.
Brian Peterson, a spokesman for Newsmax, said the company’s 2020 election coverage was based on allegations made by the president, his advisers and members of Congress.
“Dominion’s action today is a clear attempt to squelch such reporting and undermine a free press,” Peterson said in a statement.
Adapted from reporting by Associated Press.
