FBI Extends 2020 US Presidential Election Probe to Arizona

DORAL, FLORIDA - MARCH 09: US President Donald Trump speaks to reporters during a news conference at Trump National Doral Miami on March 9, 2026 in Doral, Florida. Roberto Schmidt/Getty Images/AFP
DORAL, FLORIDA - MARCH 09: US President Donald Trump speaks to reporters during a news conference at Trump National Doral Miami on March 9, 2026 in Doral, Florida. Roberto Schmidt/Getty Images/AFP
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FBI Extends 2020 US Presidential Election Probe to Arizona

DORAL, FLORIDA - MARCH 09: US President Donald Trump speaks to reporters during a news conference at Trump National Doral Miami on March 9, 2026 in Doral, Florida. Roberto Schmidt/Getty Images/AFP
DORAL, FLORIDA - MARCH 09: US President Donald Trump speaks to reporters during a news conference at Trump National Doral Miami on March 9, 2026 in Doral, Florida. Roberto Schmidt/Getty Images/AFP

The FBI has extended its investigation of the 2020 US election, which President Donald Trump falsely claims to have won, to Arizona, state officials said Monday.

The move comes six weeks after the Federal Bureau of Investigation seized 2020 election ballots in Fulton County, Georgia, as part of a probe into alleged "electoral impropriety”, reported AFP.

Warren Petersen, Republican president of the Arizona Senate, said he had complied last week with a federal grand subpoena for records related to the state senate's audit of 2020 voting in Maricopa County, Arizona's largest.

"The FBI has the records," Petersen said on X.

Trump on Monday posted a link on his Truth Social platform to an article on the right-wing news outlet Just the News about the Arizona records seizure, calling it "Great!!!"

Arizona and Georgia were among the states that Trump lost to Democrat Joe Biden in the 2020 presidential election.

- 'Weaponization' -

Arizona Attorney General Kris Mayes, a Democrat, said the 2020 election in the state had been "exhaustively reviewed."

"The election results were certified, litigated, and affirmed," Mayes said in a statement.

"Multiple audits, court proceedings, and independent investigations -- including those pursued by members of the same political party of the President -- found no evidence of fraud sufficient to alter the outcome," she said.

"What the Trump administration appears to be pursuing now is not a legitimate law enforcement inquiry," Mayes said. "It is the weaponization of federal law enforcement in service of crackpots and lies."

FBI agents had raided election offices in Georgia's Fulton County, which includes the heavily Democratic capital Atlanta, in late January, removing hundreds of boxes of ballots and other materials related to the 2020 vote.

According to the search warrant affidavit used to justify the seizure, the FBI investigation originated from a referral sent by Kurt Olsen, the "Presidentially appointed Director of Election Security and Integrity."

Olsen was among the members of Trump's 2020 legal team who filed dozens of lawsuits contesting the election results that were tossed out by courts around the country.

The Republican president and others were charged in Georgia over their alleged efforts to subvert the election, but the prosecutor became embroiled in scandal and the case was ultimately dismissed in November 2025.

Trump also faced federal charges over his alleged election subversion efforts that led to the January 6, 2021, riot at the US Capitol by his supporters.

Those charges were dropped after Trump was elected in November 2024.



Iran Not More Formidable than Thought, Top US General Says

US President Donald Trump takes a question as he speaks during a press conference at Trump National Doral Miami in Miami, Florida, US, March 9, 2026. REUTERS/Kevin Lamarque
US President Donald Trump takes a question as he speaks during a press conference at Trump National Doral Miami in Miami, Florida, US, March 9, 2026. REUTERS/Kevin Lamarque
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Iran Not More Formidable than Thought, Top US General Says

US President Donald Trump takes a question as he speaks during a press conference at Trump National Doral Miami in Miami, Florida, US, March 9, 2026. REUTERS/Kevin Lamarque
US President Donald Trump takes a question as he speaks during a press conference at Trump National Doral Miami in Miami, Florida, US, March 9, 2026. REUTERS/Kevin Lamarque

The top US general said on Tuesday that while Iran was fighting, it was not more formidable than Washington had thought, as the United States geared up for the most intense day of strikes against Iran in the war so far.

General Dan Caine, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, told reporters that the United States was carrying out strikes against Iranian mine-laying vessels and the Pentagon would look at a range of options if it was tasked with escorting ships through the Strait of Hormuz, Reuters reported.

The war has effectively shut the Strait of Hormuz, a chokepoint for global oil and liquefied natural gas transport, leaving tankers unable to sail for more than a week and forcing producers to halt pumping as storage fills.

"I think they're fighting, and I respect that, but I don't think they're more formidable than what we thought," Caine said.

US President Donald Trump on Monday threatened to escalate the war with Iran if it blocked oil shipments from the Middle East, even as he predicted a quick end to the conflict.

During the press conference at the Pentagon, US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said the United States would carry out the most intense day of strikes against Iran on Tuesday.

Hegseth reiterated that this would not be an endless war and said Trump would decide when the US campaign would end.

The United States has carried out strikes against more than 5,000 targets in the first 10 days of the campaign, including against more than 50 naval ships, Caine said.


Merz Says Sees 'No Common Plan' to Quickly End Iran War

Policemen stand on top of their car with pictures of the late Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, right and left, and his son Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei, the successor to him, center, during a rally to support him in Tehran, Iran, Monday, March 9, 2026. (AP Photo/Vahid Salemi)
Policemen stand on top of their car with pictures of the late Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, right and left, and his son Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei, the successor to him, center, during a rally to support him in Tehran, Iran, Monday, March 9, 2026. (AP Photo/Vahid Salemi)
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Merz Says Sees 'No Common Plan' to Quickly End Iran War

Policemen stand on top of their car with pictures of the late Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, right and left, and his son Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei, the successor to him, center, during a rally to support him in Tehran, Iran, Monday, March 9, 2026. (AP Photo/Vahid Salemi)
Policemen stand on top of their car with pictures of the late Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, right and left, and his son Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei, the successor to him, center, during a rally to support him in Tehran, Iran, Monday, March 9, 2026. (AP Photo/Vahid Salemi)

German Chancellor Friedrich Merz voiced concern Tuesday that the United States and Israel appear to have "no common plan" for bringing the war against Iran "to a swift and convincing end", AFP reported.

"The United States and Israel have been waging war against Iran for over a week. We share many of these goals, but with each day of the war, more questions arise," Merz said.

"We are particularly concerned that there is apparently no common plan for how this war can be brought to a swift and convincing end."


China Lifts Military Budget to Modernize Weapons, Defense Technology

Bull statues near screens showing the Hang Seng stock index and stock prices outside Exchange Square, in Hong Kong, China, February 3, 2026. REUTERS/Tyrone Siu//File Photo
Bull statues near screens showing the Hang Seng stock index and stock prices outside Exchange Square, in Hong Kong, China, February 3, 2026. REUTERS/Tyrone Siu//File Photo
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China Lifts Military Budget to Modernize Weapons, Defense Technology

Bull statues near screens showing the Hang Seng stock index and stock prices outside Exchange Square, in Hong Kong, China, February 3, 2026. REUTERS/Tyrone Siu//File Photo
Bull statues near screens showing the Hang Seng stock index and stock prices outside Exchange Square, in Hong Kong, China, February 3, 2026. REUTERS/Tyrone Siu//File Photo

China's increased military spending will fund its military modernization and help develop advanced weapons and defense technology innovation, the spokesperson for the military delegation at its annual parliament meeting, Zhang Xiaogang, said Tuesday.

The Chinese government has kept defense spending growing at a steady and reasonable pace in recent years, coordinated with economic development, Zhang said, Reuters reported.

China's nationwide defense spending in 2026 is set at 1.94 trillion yuan ($282 billion) in the national public budget, up 6.9% from the previous year. That includes 1.91 trillion yuan from the central government, a 7% increase on the year.

The increased spending will be used for China's military modernization, optimizing joint combat systems, speeding up development of advanced weapons and defense technology innovation, as well as military personnel and training.

The military will promote reform of military budget management and strengthen full-chain control and performance evaluation to ensure efficient and effective spending.