With its announcement of South Carolina Attorney General Alan Wilson as new chair, the Republican Attorneys General Association (RAGA) continues to reward those who perpetuated the Big Lie 

Part of the far-right coalition that attempted to overturn a democratically-held election, Wilson embraces organization despite its role in inciting the deadly insurrection at the U.S. Capitol in January 

Washington, D.C. — Yesterday, the Republican Attorneys General Association (RAGA) announced its new chair, South Carolina Attorney General Alan Wilson, continuing its troubling pattern of uplifting those who perpetuated the Big Lie and helped incite the deadly insurrection on January 6th. In light of the announcement, government watchdog Accountable.US released the following statement: 

“As a cabal of conservatives continue to double down on Trump’s Big Lie and become more un-democratic, it’s no surprise that conspiracy monger Alan Wilson was selected as RAGA’s next chairman. If the prerequisites for the role include being a tool to bolster the former president’s lies and attempting to overturn the results of a democratically-held election, Wilson is more than qualified to lead this group. With every new announcement of a far-right extremist being rewarded with a leadership position within RAGA, the group continues its support of anti-democratic, authoritarian positions that not only go against the rule of law they swore to protect, but against our democracy itself,” said Kyle Herrig, president of Accountable.US. 

Wilson was part of the coalition that sought to overturn the results of the 2020 general election without providing a shred of evidence of widespread voter fraud. His questionable behavior didn’t start there: in 2015, Wilson cost South Carolina taxpayers over $135,000 on a failed effort to ban gay marriage in the state, even after the Supreme Court’s ruling on the issue. In 2018, a South Carolina grand jury investigation found that Wilson had undermined a statehouse corruption probe of a political operative with whom he had a personal relationship, proving his loyalties lie not with the people of South Carolina, but with the wealthy and well-connected.  

The chairman position was vacant after former RAGA Chair Chris Carr stepped down in a desperate attempt to distance himself — four months later — from the group after they drove attendance to the “Stop the Steal” rally that preceded the violent insurrection at the U.S. Capitol in January. The group’s fundraising arm, the Rule of Law Defense Fund, helped organize the rally and paid for a robocall that encouraged attendees to “stop the steal” and “fight” to protect election integrity. 

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