Colorado court overturns Tina Peters' sentence in 2020 election scheme case

Karissa Waddick, USA TODAYThu, April 2, 2026 at 7:39 PM UTC

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A Colorado appeals court has overturned a nine-year prison sentence for Tina Peters, a former Republican county clerk convicted of letting someone access a secure voting system in an effort to prove President Donald Trump’s 2020 baseless claims of election fraud.

The unanimous decision from a three-judge appeals panel upheld Peter’s conviction but found the lower court had incorrectly sentenced her and infringed on her freedom of speech.

In the court’s opinion, Judge Ted C. Tow III found that the lower court sentenced Peters based partially on her views that the 2020 election was stolen from Trump. However, Peters was on trial for “deceitful actions in her attempt to gather evidence of such fraud,” rather than her views about the fraud, Tow said.

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“The tenor of the court’s comments makes clear that it felt the sentence length was necessary, at least in part, to prevent her from continuing to espouse views the court deemed 'damaging,'” he wrote.

“But the court failed to acknowledge that Peters is no longer the Mesa County Clerk and Recorder. She is no longer in a position to engage in the conduct that led to her conviction,” he continued. “So it cannot be said that the lengthy prison sentence was for specific deterrence.”

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The appeals court ordered the trial court judge to resentence Peters.

Peters was convicted on seven criminal charges, including felony attempt to influence a public servant, in 2024. Peters was running for Colorado secretary of state at the time of the indictment, and attracted significant attention over the case.

In December, Trump issued a symbolic pardon for Peters in a Truth Social post, writing: "Tina is sitting in a Colorado prison for the 'crime' of demanding Honest Elections. Today I am granting Tina a full Pardon for her attempts to expose Voter Fraud in the Rigged 2020 Presidential Election!"

The president’s pardon power, however, only extends to federal charges. Peters was convicted on state charges.

Contributing: Trevor Hughes, Natalie Neysa Alund and Joey Garrison

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Colorado court overturns Tina Peters sentence in 2020 election case

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