Trump Issues Pardon for Tina Peters, Colorado Officials Reject Authority Over State Conviction

President Trump Pardons Tina Peters Amidst State Conviction

Former President Donald Trump announced on Thursday, December 11, 2025, that he has issued a pardon for Tina Peters, the former Mesa County Clerk in Colorado. Peters was previously convicted on state charges related to election system breaches. The pardon, however, has been met with immediate rejection from Colorado state officials, who maintain that a presidential pardon does not apply to state convictions.

Details of Peters' Conviction and Sentencing

Tina Peters was convicted in August 2024 in a Colorado state court on seven counts, including four felonies. These charges stemmed from her actions in 2021, where she facilitated unauthorized access to Mesa County's Dominion electronic voting machines and copied their hard drives. Prosecutors alleged this was part of an effort to uncover evidence of fraud in the 2020 presidential election. Peters was subsequently sentenced to nine years in prison in October 2024, becoming the first election official in the U.S. convicted of criminal charges related to attempts to overturn the 2020 election.

State Officials Challenge Pardon's Legality

Colorado officials have firmly stated that President Trump's pardon holds no legal authority over Peters' state conviction. Governor Jared Polis and Secretary of State Jena Griswold, along with the Colorado Attorney General's Office, have all rejected the pardon. Governor Polis emphasized, 'No President has jurisdiction over state law nor the power to pardon a person for state convictions.' Secretary Griswold echoed this sentiment, stating, 'Trump has no constitutional authority to pardon her. His assault is not just on our democracy, but on states' rights and the American constitution.' The consensus among legal experts is that presidential pardon power is limited to federal crimes.

Trump's Rationale and Previous Interventions

In a social media post announcing the pardon, President Trump described Peters as a 'Patriot' who was targeted for 'demanding Honest Elections' and attempting to 'expose Voter Fraud in the Rigged 2020 Presidential Election!' This pardon follows earlier efforts by Trump to intervene in Peters' case. In August, he had warned of 'harsh measures' if Peters was not released from prison and had previously ordered the Justice Department to take action for her release. The Federal Bureau of Prisons had requested to transfer Peters to federal custody, a request that Governor Polis declined. Peters' attorney, Peter Ticktin, had applied for the pardon, arguing for an expansive interpretation of presidential pardon powers to include state cases, a legal theory that remains untested in court. Trump has also issued similar 'symbolic pardons' for other individuals facing state charges related to efforts to challenge the 2020 election results, including Rudy Giuliani and Mark Meadows.

Ongoing Legal Status

Despite the presidential pardon, Tina Peters remains incarcerated, serving her nine-year sentence in a Colorado state prison. A federal judge recently denied Peters' petition for release pending appeal, ruling that state proceedings must conclude before federal intervention can be considered.