Attorneys representing Smartmatic, an electronic voting company accused by allies of former President Donald Trump of tampering with the 2020 election, urged a Delaware judge to rule in their favor in a defamation lawsuit against conservative news outlet Newsmax. The lawsuit, filed in 2021, alleges that Newsmax hosts and guests made false and defamatory statements suggesting Smartmatic was involved in rigging the election and manipulating votes with its software. Smartmatic’s attorney emphasized during a hearing that the company had no involvement in election rigging and its software did not alter any votes.
On the other side, Newsmax’s attorneys, based in Florida like the company itself, requested the judge to rule in their favor before the scheduled trial in September. They argued that Newsmax was merely reporting on serious accusations of vote manipulation being made by Trump and his supporters and should be protected under a “fair reporting” or “neutral reporting” privilege under Florida law. The judge did not provide a ruling on the motions for summary judgment, advising both parties to continue preparing for the upcoming trial.
Besides the lawsuit against Newsmax, Smartmatic has also filed defamation suits against Fox News and reached a settlement with One America News Network. The legal actions stem from conservative news outlets’ reports following the 2020 election. Dominion Voting Systems has also taken legal action against those spreading falsehoods linking the company to Trump’s election loss. Last year, Fox News settled a defamation lawsuit with Dominion for $787 million in a case overseen by the same Delaware judge.
To succeed in the defamation case against Newsmax, Smartmatic must demonstrate that the network acted with “actual malice” or “reckless disregard for the truth” when airing false claims of election fraud. Smartmatic’s attorney argued against Newsmax’s attempt to claim fair or neutral reporting, stating that the reports were biased and lacked evidence to support claims of widespread fraud. Newsmax’s attorney countered by asserting that the network was following CEO Chris Ruddy’s directive to report on serious accusations responsibly and without confirming their validity.
After a federal grand jury in Florida indicted current and former Smartmatic executives for an alleged bribery scheme related to voting machines in the Philippines, Newsmax, in court documents, portrayed Smartmatic as a struggling company with ulterior motives for the defamation lawsuit. The recent hearing in Delaware followed these developments in the ongoing legal battle between Smartmatic and Newsmax.