Trump pardons NC’s Mark Meadows, Sidney Powell in fake elector scheme

Two North Carolinians involved in attempts to overthrow the 2020 presidential election will receive pardons from President Donald Trump, according to a social media post by Department of Justice Attorney Ed Martin.

Former Rep. Mark Meadows, a Republican from Western North Carolina, as well as attorney Sidney Powell, both made a list of more than 70 people who schemed to ensure Trump won a second term in 2020.

“This proclamation ends a grave national injustice perpetrated upon the American people following the 2020 Presidential Election and continues the process of national reconciliation,” Trump wrote in his pardon.

The pardons may do little to help those on the list. None of them faced federal charges.

After President Joe Biden won the 2020 election, Trump and his advisers came up with a scheme to use a set of fake electors in seven states to certify that Trump falsely won instead of Biden. To succeed, Vice President Mike Pence would have had to go along with the scheme, but he refused.

Pence’s adherence to the constitution led to calls for his death from Trump supporters, and charges against Trump and his co-conspirators.

Who is Mark Meadows?

Meadows’ name emerged as a central figure in the scheme during the Jan. 6 congressional hearings at the U.S. Capitol.

Meadows, 66, left his elected position as North Carolina’s 11th District congressman in March 2020, to become Trump’s chief of staff.

The public learned through a series of hearings that Meadows was largely involved in attempts to falsely prove voter fraud took place in the 2020 election. That included his presence on a phone call where Trump pressured Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger, a Republican, to change his state’s election results.

Meadows also helped connect Trump to former North Carolina Supreme Court Chief Justice Mark Martin who ensured Trump that Pence could legally reject the electoral count. Martin now works at High Point University as the founding dean of its law school.

The Jan. 6 committee brought in a key witness, Cassidy Hutchinson, one of Meadows’ top aides, to testify about Meadows’ actions leading up to and in the aftermath of Jan. 6, 2021. She testified that Meadows was among several who asked Trump for a pardon before he left office in his first term.

Since then Meadows has been held in contempt of Congress, been accused of voter fraud, was indicted in the election investigations in Georgia and Arizona and received immunity in another case for testifying against Trump.

Meadows now runs the Conservative Partnership Institute, which looks to change voting laws.

Who is Sidney Powell?

Powell made a name for herself in the Jan. 6 committee hearings for wearing animal print blouse while chugging a Diet Dr. Pepper.

Powell, 70, grew up in Raleigh and earned her law degree at UNC-Chapel Hill.

She became part of a team of lawyers, including Rudy Giuliani — who was also pardoned Sunday night — tasked with challenging the election results claiming voter fraud.

During the Jan. 6 committee hearings, the public learned that Powell joined Trump’s legal team following his 2020 election loss, and her conspiracy theories were so out there that even Trump called them “crazy.”

In December 2020, she was one of several lawyers to meet with Trump in the Oval Office to plan how to overturn Biden’s election win.

Hutchinson described the meeting as “unhinged” and said then-White House Counsel Pat Cipollone had to enter the Oval Office and break it up. But it was also during that meeting, that the group decided to seize U.S. voting machines and have Powell lead an investigation into voter fraud.

Powell faced numerous charges, including racketeering, and lawsuits.

She pleaded guilty to six misdemeanors in Georgia and was sentenced to six years’ probation, a $6,000 fine and $2,700 in restitution.

This story was originally published November 10, 2025 at 11:09 AM.

Danielle Battaglia

McClatchy DC

Danielle Battaglia is the congressional impact reporter for The News & Observer and The Charlotte Observer, leading coverage of the impact of North Carolina’s congressional delegation and the White House. Her career has spanned three North Carolina newsrooms where she has covered crime, courts and local, state and national politics. She has won two McClatchy President’s awards and numerous national and state awards for her work.