Declassified Report by FBI Director Kash Patel Details Claims of Counterfeit Driver’s Licenses Used for Fraudulent Mail-In Ballots

WASHINGTON D.C. - In a stunning revelation, FBI Director Kash Patel has declassified and submitted a report to Congress alleging that the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) orchestrated a scheme to interfere in the 2020 U.S. presidential election by mass-producing fake U.S. driver’s licenses. The documents, handed over to Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley on June 16, 2025, claim the counterfeit IDs were intended to facilitate fraudulent mail-in ballots to benefit then-Democratic candidate Joe Biden.

The intelligence report, originally drafted in August 2020, stems from information provided by a confidential FBI source. According to officials familiar with the documents, the source alleged that China was manufacturing and shipping fake driver’s licenses to create voter identities for Chinese residents in the United States, enabling them to cast fraudulent mail-in ballots. The plot reportedly exploited the surge in mail-in voting during the COVID-19 pandemic. U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) intercepted nearly 20,000 counterfeit licenses, primarily from Hong Kong and mainland China, in late July 2020 at Chicago’s O’Hare International Airport, which some claim could corroborate the allegations. However, no direct link between the seized IDs and the alleged interference has been established.

Patel, in a statement to Just the News, emphasized the FBI’s commitment to transparency under his leadership. “Thanks to the oversight work and partnership of Chairman Grassley, the FBI continues to provide unprecedented transparency at the people’s Bureau,” he said. “We have located documents Chairman Grassley requested, which detail alarming allegations related to the 2020 U.S. election, including allegations of interference by the CCP.” Patel noted that the intelligence, while partially substantiated, was abruptly recalled and never fully investigated, raising questions about the FBI’s handling of the matter at the time.

The report’s recall in 2020, under then-FBI Director Christopher Wray, has drawn particular scrutiny. Officials told Just the News that the FBI instructed intelligence agencies to destroy all copies of the report and remove it from their systems, citing the need to re-interview the source. This occurred around the same time Wray testified to Congress that there were “no known plots” of foreign interference in the 2020 election. Critics, including Patel, argue this suppression prevented a thorough investigation into a potential threat to election integrity.

The declassified documents allege the fake licenses included real U.S. citizen data, such as addresses and ID numbers, making them difficult to detect. However, skepticism remains about the feasibility of the plot. Mail-in ballot security measures, such as signature verification against voter registration records, pose significant hurdles to using fake IDs for voting fraud. Additionally, the FBI has not disclosed the credibility of the confidential source, and questions linger about whether the individual was re-interviewed.

Media coverage of the report varies sharply along political lines. Right-leaning outlets, such as Just the News and The Western Journal, have framed the allegations as evidence of a deliberate cover-up by Wray’s FBI. Left-leaning sources, like NBC News, have downplayed the significance of the ID seizures, noting that fake IDs are commonly purchased by college students for non-election purposes, such as buying alcohol. The lack of conclusive evidence tying the counterfeit licenses to an electoral plot has fueled debate over the report’s implications.

Grassley, a long-time advocate for investigating foreign interference, has requested additional information from the FBI to clarify the report’s findings and the circumstances of its recall. Lawmakers, including Grassley, have previously raised concerns about China’s role in producing fake U.S. documents, citing incidents like the 2011 seizure of 1,700 counterfeit licenses at O’Hare.

The allegations come amid ongoing claims by former President Donald Trump that the 2020 election was “rigged.” Biden’s narrow victories in swing states like Arizona, Georgia, and Wisconsin—by margins of 10,000 to 20,000 votes—have kept election integrity debates alive. While the report does not claim the fake IDs decisively altered the election’s outcome, it underscores vulnerabilities in the mail-in voting system and raises questions about the FBI’s response to potential foreign threats.

Patel’s decision to declassify the report signals a renewed focus on election security under the Trump administration. As Congress reviews the documents, the controversy is likely to intensify, with calls for further investigation into both the alleged Chinese plot and the FBI’s handling of the intelligence. For now, the report remains a flashpoint in the broader debate over the 2020 election’s integrity.