Donald Trump symbolically pardoned Tina Peters, a former Mesa County, Colorado, clerk convicted of state charges related to breaching county voting-machine equipment following the 2020 election.The pardon, announced in a post on X, does not free Peters from her nine-year prison sentence, as presidential pardons apply only to federal offenses, leaving her state conviction standing.Colorado officials, including
Jena Griswold and
Phil Weiser, assert Trump lacks authority to pardon state convictions, raising concerns about establishing a dangerous precedent and bolstering baseless election-denial claims.