On Friday, President Donald Trump called for the appointment of a special prosecutor to investigate the 2020 election, which was won by Democrat Joe Biden. In a social media post, Trump reiterated his claims that the election was plagued by widespread fraud, stating, "Biden was grossly incompetent, and the 2020 election was a total FRAUD!" He emphasized that "The evidence is MASSIVE and OVERWHELMING" and insisted that a special prosecutor must be appointed to prevent a repeat of what he perceives as election misconduct in the United States.

This call for a special prosecutor coincided with a critical foreign policy decision regarding the Israel-Iran war, as Trump seeks to undermine the legitimacy of Biden's presidency. Earlier in the month, he directed his administration to investigate Biden’s actions as president, alleging that aides had concealed his predecessor’s “cognitive decline.” Biden has dismissed these allegations as merely a distraction from significant issues.

Trump's claims regarding voter fraud have been extensively discredited. Courts across the country, as well as former U.S. Attorney General William Barr, concluded that there was no significant evidence of fraud that could have impacted the election outcome. Furthermore, the Department of Homeland Security’s cybersecurity division affirmed that the 2020 election was "the most secure in American history."

Uncertainty surrounds what specific elements Trump hopes a special prosecutor would examine. If Attorney General Pam Bondi follows his request, she may be compelled to appoint a prosecutor who has undergone Senate confirmation. A spokesman for the Justice Department declined to comment on Trump’s request.

In recent years, the Justice Department has appointed a number of special counsels to investigate politically sensitive matters, involving both Trump and Biden. Last year, Trump's legal team successfully challenged the appointment of Jack Smith, who was investigating Trump's actions related to the January 6 Capitol riot and his handling of classified documents at his Mar-a-Lago estate in Florida. A judge, appointed by Trump, ruled that then-Attorney General Merrick Garland had overstepped his authority by appointing a special counsel without Senate confirmation and subsequently dismissed the case.

The legal team that challenged Smith's appointment included Todd Blanche, who is now the deputy attorney general, and Emil Bove, who is Blanche’s top deputy and has recently been nominated for a federal appeals court judgeship.

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