Rudy Giuliani to Pay $148 Million to Two Election Workers He’d Defamed

Gage Skidmore | Flickr.com

Trump ally and election denier Rudy Giuliani was ordered by a jury to pay $148 million to two Georgia election officials whom he defamed as he spread the Big Lie that the 2020 presidential election was stolen.

Mother and daughter, Ruby Freeman and Shaye Moss were devoted election workers for years before the lies told by Giuliani and Donald Trump swept them into the national spotlight—and put them in the crosshairs of Trump supporters across the country.

Giuliani repeatedly made false allegations that Freeman and Moss engaged in ballot fraud to help then-candidate Joe Biden win Georgia’s electoral college votes. Consequently, Freeman and Moss were terrorized by Trump supporters and the target of numerous death threats. 

Freeman and Moss eventually sued Giuliani and the right-wing media outlet One America News Network. OAN settled with the pair and a federal judge found Giuliani liable for defamation in summary judgment.

The trial which just concluded was held to determine how much Giuliani would pay. Though Freeman and Moss only sought up to $43 million, the jury awarded them the vastly greater sum of $148 million.

Giuliani has vowed to appeal or seek a new trial. Freeman and Moss expressed gratitude to the jury but vowed to continue to seek justice against Giuliani’s allies who also helped defame them.