Editors’ notes: Readers may also be interested in an annotated version of the DOJ brief with names included. Klasfeld’s reporting is part of Just Security’s Trump Trials Clearinghouse.
Special Counsel Jack Smith’s massive legal brief detailing former President Donald Trump’s efforts to overturn the 2020 presidential election does not take elaborate sleuthing to decode.
Many of the redacted names inside the 165-page filing contain the specific job titles, like those of Chief of Staff Mark Meadows, Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp, Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, and other unmistakable public officials. Others reference specific social media posts or other public records that unmask the figures hidden behind the black lines.
This resource details all that is publicly known about the more than 80 redacted names, a veritable “Who’s Who” of the people who either supported, witnessed, or opposed what prosecutors call “a conspiracy against the rights of millions of Americans to vote and have their votes counted.”
The Unindicted Co-Conspirators
The first five figures branded in Trump’s indictment as his alleged co-conspirators have been previously known, but now, all six have been confirmed.
Note-1: Ex-Department of Justice official Jeff Clark, who was formerly CC4, was dropped in the superseding indictment as a co-conspirator following the Supreme Court’s ruling in Trump v. Vance.
Note-2: P5 is also labeled a “co-conspirator” in this brief. This is not novel; the DOJ categorized the individual as such in an earlier brief (see prior analysis at Just Security).
They are:
(CC1) Rudy Giuliani: The former New York City mayor tried to overturn Trump’s defeat across the country, including through a federal lawsuit in Pennsylvania
[pp. 4, 7, 9, 10, 11, 18, 19, 21, 22, 25, 30, 32, 33, 34, 39, 40, 42, 43, 44, 47, 50, 51, 52, 54, 58, 61, 62, 63, 64, 65, 70, 71, 74, 77, 83, 84, 101, 103, 104, 105, 106, 112, 113, 121, 128, 134, 145, 149, 150, 151, 152, 157, 159, 160]
(CC2) John Eastman: The author of the so-called “coup memos”
[pp. 4, 20, 22, 24, 27, 29, 34, 47, 50, 51, 53, 59, 60, 61, 62, 63, 64, 65, 66, 67, 68, 69, 70, 71, 72, 74, 75, 77, 85, 90, 97, 99, 107, 113, 121, 149, 150, 153, 157]
(CC3) Sidney Powell: The driving force behind the so-called “Kraken” lawsuits seeking to overturn election results in four states
[pp. 4, 10, 42, 43, 44, 66, 133, 149, 151, 152, 155, 156]
(CC5) Kenneth Chesebro: The alleged architect of Trump’s false electors scheme
[pp. 4, 48, 49, 50, 51, 54, 55, 56, 57, 58, 59, 60, 61, 62, 63, 70, 73, 78]
(CC6) Boris Epshteyn: For more than a year, reporters have speculated — but not confirmed — Epshteyn’s identity as the final alleged co-conspirator in Trump’s indictment, but Jack Smith’s latest brief eliminates all doubt by identifying him as a guest of Steve Bannon’s podcast “War Room” on Jan. 2, 2021, four days before the attack on the U.S. Capitol.
[pp. 4, 7, 9, 10, 20, 51, 52, 54, 59, 62, 63, 64, 65, 67, 70, 83, 113, 133, 159]
The Companies
The brief also thinly veils the identities of three companies that became debunkers of false election-fraud conspiracy theories (Simpatico and Berkley Group) or a lightning rod for false election-fraud conspiracy theories (Dominion). They are:
(C1) Simpatico Software Systems: The first of two firms that the Trump campaign hired to detect wide scale fraud in the 2020 presidential election — but which instead debunked such claims. The company’s president, Ken Block, publicly confirmed “C1” is Simpatico on social media.
[pp. 12, 152]
(C2) Berkeley Research Group: The second of two firms that the Trump campaign hired to detect wide scale fraud in the 2020 presidential election — but which instead debunked such claims.
[pp. 12, 152]
(C3) Dominion Voting Systems: One of two voting machine companies subjected to false conspiracy theories that they flipped votes from Trump to Joe Biden in the 2020 presidential election, and the only one that operated in Georgia.
[pp. 12, 42, 43, 45, 46, 47, 66, 132, 156]
The Others
Except for one exception (P5), the other figures listed in Jack Smith’s legal brief are not accused of being Trump’s co-conspirators. Some individuals witnessed Trump’s efforts to overturn the 2020 election; some opposed them; and others may have assisted them in ways that were unprosecuted or did not rise to the level of an alleged co-conspirator. We have declined to name anyone whose identity is strongly suspected, but which we believed could not be confirmed with the available details. Many identifications were confirmed through specific job titles listed in court papers; others required additional context through extrinsic evidence. If you have information to make definitive identifications, please send tips to [email protected].
The guide below matches the numbers with the names, when available, and the details in the brief that identify them:
(P1) Steve Bannon: The brief alludes to Bannon’s incendiary comments on his podcast “War Room,” particularly his warning of a “climactic battle” coming on Jan. 6, 2021, during an episode that aired four days earlier.
[pp. 4, 7, 9, 10, 58, 62, 64, 65, 67, 68, 70, 72, 107, 159, 160]
(P2) Bill Stepien: Trump’s then-campaign manager
[pp. 4, 5, 9, 10, 17, 63, 151]
(P3) Justin Clark: Trump’s then-deputy campaign manager
[pp. 4, 9, 38, 39, 50, 52, 53, 151, 152]
(P4) Jason Miller: Trump’s senior campaign advisor
[pp. 4, 7, 9, 21, 25, 43, 52, 53, 72, 128, 151]
Update (P5) The Washington Post identifies this Trump campaign operative — also described as his “agent” and “co-conspirator” – as Michael Roman. He allegedly replied “Make them riot” and “Do it” when the former president’s supporters got restive outside of a Detroit polling facility in November 2020, according to the brief. (See also DOJ’s Dec. 2023 brief involving this individual.)
[pp. 4, 8, 51, 54, 55]
(P6) This individual, said to be one of Trump’s private advisers or campaign advisers, was a private citizen when Trump allegedly said that he would declare victory before the votes were counted.
[p. 5]
(P7) Trump allegedly mocked Sidney Powell in front of this White House staffer in the position of Assistant to the President who also volunteered for the campaign, calling Powell’s election fraud claims “crazy”
[pp. 5, 43, 44, 147, 154, 155]
(P8) Mark Short: Vice President Mike Pence’s chief of staff
[pp. 5, 66, 69, 71, 97, 98, 99]
(P9) Eric Herschmann: One of Trump’s first impeachment attorneys, Herschmann was a White House lawyer, whose biography is detailed at length in the brief, including his longtime friendship with Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner
[pp. 9, 11, 12, 14, 22, 27, 39, 44, 52, 53, 66, 104, 141, 147, 149, 150, 151, 152, 153, 160, 162]
(P10) Joseph diGenova: A redacted Trump tweet reveals the identity of the ex-Trump lawyer
[pp. 10, 42, 43, 45, 151]
(P11) Victoria Toensing: A redacted Trump tweet reveals the identity of the ex-Trump lawyer
[p. 10]
(P12) Jenna Ellis: A redacted Trump tweet reveals the identity of the ex-Trump lawyer
[pp. 10, 19, 39, 46, 52, 55, 106, 151, 152, 159]
(P13) Jared Kushner: Trump’s son-in-law
[pp. 11, 156]
(P14) Ivanka Trump: Trump’s daughter
[pp. 11, 156]
(P15) Nick Luna: Trump’s White House Director of Oval Office Operations
[pp. 15, 142, 147, 156, 162]
(P16) Former Gov. Doug Ducey (R): Then-governor of Arizona
[pp. 17, 18, 26, 100, 101, 102, 135]
(P17) Gov. Brian Kemp (R): Governor of Georgia
[pp. 18, 26, 27, 28, 68, 122, 135]
(P18) Former Rep. Rusty Bowers (R): Then-speaker of the Arizona House of Representatives
[pp. 19, 20, 21, 100, 106, 107, 131, 133, 134]
(P19) Christina Bobb: The Trump campaign staffer’s tweet attacking Bowers is quoted in the brief
[pp. 20, 51, 52, 107, 131, 133, 134]
(P20) Rep. Rusty Bowers’s legal counsel: Two days before Jan. 6, 2021, John Eastman called then-Arizona House Speaker Bowers and this person — Bowers’s attorney — in an attempt to decertify the state’s electors.
[p. 20]
(P21) Mark Meadows: White House chief of staff
[pp. 22, 29, 32, 50, 104, 109, 110, 150]
(P22) This Trump campaign attorney debunked Rudy Giuliani’s claim that more than 10,000 dead people voted in Georgia
[pp. 22, 152]
(P23) Ray Smith III: This private attorney for Trump falsely claimed more than 10,000 dead people voted in Georgia at the state’s Senate Judiciary Subcommittee hearing in testimony that is time-stamped in the prosecution’s legal brief (see minute 30:54)
[p. 22]
(P24) Jackie Pick: This figure, described as Trump’s “agent,” presented misleading footage to the George State Senate smearing election workers Shaye Moss and Ruby Freeman with false claim they were engaged in fraud
[p. 22]
(P25) Gabriel Sterling: The chief operating officer from the Georgia Secretary of State’s office
[pp. 23, 45]
(P26) Chris Carr: Attorney general of Georgia
[pp. 23, 24, 25, 100, 107, 108]
(P27) Sen. David Perdue (R-Ga.): Trump’s tweet praising Georgia’s then-incumbent senator appears in redacted form in the brief
[pp. 23, 24, 28, 108, 117, 118]
(P28) Sen. Kelly Loeffler (R-Ga.): Trump’s tweet praising Georgia’s then-incumbent senator appears in redacted form in the brief
[pp. 24, 28, 108, 117, 118]
(P29) Shaye Moss: One of the Georgia election workers Giuliani defamed before the Georgia legislature
[pp. 25, 26]
(P30) Ruby Freeman: Her mother, also a Georgia election worker
[pp. 25, 26, 29]
(P31) Cleta Mitchell: The Trump attorney’s appearance on the call with Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger is quoted in the brief
[pp. 27, 29, 30, 109, 110]
(P32) Kurt Hilbert: The former president’s counsel of record in Trump v. Kemp
[pp. 27, 29, 31, 109, 110]
(P33) Sec. Brad Raffensperger (R): Georgia secretary of state
[pp. 28, 29, 30, 31, 46, 47, 64, 68, 100, 109, 110, 135]
(P34) Former Lt. Gov. Geoffrey Duncan (R): Trump’s redacted tweet attacking the former lieutenant governor of Georgia confirms his identity in the brief
[p. 28]
(P35) Ryan Germany: The secretary’s general counsel appears in the passage of the transcript of the infamous Trump-Raffensperger phone call, which can be seen in redacted form in the brief
[pp. 29, 30, 110]
(P36) Alex Kaufman: Meadows introduced “Alex” at the outside of the Raffensperger call described in the brief
[pp. 29, 109]
(P37) Former Sen. Mike Shirkey (R): Michigan’s former Senate Majority Leader—and Trump pressure campaign target
[pp. 31, 32, 33, 34, 35, 103, 104, 105, 157]
(P38) Former Rep. Lee Chatfield (R): Michigan’s former speaker of the House of Representatives—and Trump pressure campaign target
[pp. 31, 32, 33, 34, 35, 46, 50, 103, 104, 105]
(P39) Ronna McDaniel: Then-RNC chairwoman
[pp. 31, 32, 40, 46, 51, 53, 57, 58, 103, 112, 113, 151, 157]
(Note: There is no P40 in the brief.)
(P41) A Michigan campaign associate
[p. 34]
(P42) Molly Michael: Trump’s executive assistant
[pp. 42, 57, 61, 113, 114, 147, 156, 157]
(P43) Justin Riemer: The RNC’s then-chief counsel
[pp. 36, 39, 40]
(P44) An RNC spokesperson
[pp. 36, 39]
(P45) Dan Scavino: Trump dictated a tweet to his then-social media chief, in an account in the brief that matches congressional testimony and public reporting
[pp. 36, 43, 44, 120, 139, 147, 154, 155, 162]
(P46) Lawrence Tabas: Chairman of the Pennsylvania Republican Party
[pp. 37, 38, 54, 57]
(P47) Al Schmidt: Trump attacked Schmidt, a then-Philadelphia City Commissioner and fellow Republican, on Twitter over his refusal to help overturn the election results
[pp. 14, 38, 131, 132]
(P48) Bernie Kerik: The ex-NYPD commissioner’s tweet attacking Pennsylvania lawmakers appears in redacted form in the brief
[pp. 40, 131, 134, 151]
(P49) Brian Hagedorn: Trump complained, in a tweet reproduced in the brief, about this conservative Wisconsin Supreme Court Justice who cast the deciding vote by joining the liberals in rejecting Trump’s election lawsuit
[pp. 41, 59, 132, 134, 135]
(P50) Chris Krebs: Trump assailed his then-cybersecurity czar (head of CISA) for deeming the 2020 election the “most secure” in history
[pp. 42, 43, 45, 131, 132, 133, 158, 160, 161, 163]
(P51) Tucker Carlson: The ex-Fox News personality’s scorn for conspiracy theorist lawyer Sidney Powell makes an appearance in the legal brief
[p. 43]
(P52) Bill Barr: Trump’s attorney general found no evidence of outcome-determinative fraud in the 2020 presidential election
[pp. 46, 158, 159, 160, 161, 163]
(P53) Jack Wilenchik: This attorney’s email about Kenneth Chesebro’s false-electors plan appears in public reporting and the legal brief
[p. 51]
(P54) This Trump campaign staffer discussed the false electors scheme on a text message thread with Jason Miller and Eric Herschmann.
[pp. 52, 154]
(P55) This figure was a member of the legal team Rudy Giuliani had been convening, which Jason Miller derisively dubbed the “Star Wars bar”
[p. 52]
(P56) Another member of the “Star Wars bar”
[pp. 52, 151]
(P57) Former Rep. Tom Marino (R-Penn): Then- Pennsylvania congressman and former U.S. Attorney who opted out of Trump’s false electors scheme
[p. 53]
(P58) Greg Jacob: Then VP Pence’s general counsel whose heated email exchange with John Eastman on Jan. 6, 2021 blamed him for the “siege” became public years before being quoted in the brief
[pp. 66, 69, 70, 71, 85, 97, 98, 99]
(P59) Pat Cipollone: Trump’s White House counsel urged the president to calm the riot
[pp. 97, 104, 141, 142, 160]
(P60) Kayleigh McEnany: Then-White House press secretary
[p. 103]
(P61) Former Sen. Karen Fann (R-Ariz.): Arizona’s then-state senate president
[pp. 106, 107]
(P62) Ken Paxton: Texas Attorney General behind a lawsuit to overturn Trump’s defeats in four other states
[p. 108]
(P63) Eric Schmitt: Missouri Attorney General who authored an amicus brief supporting Paxton’s lawsuit
[p. 108]
(P64) Caroline Wren: Trump’s private fundraiser who helped plan the rally at the Ellipse
[p. 118]
(P65) Julie Fancelli: Described in the brief as a “grocery story heiress,” Fancelli is a conservative donor who played a key role in the “Stop the Steal” rally and is a daughter of the founder of Publix
[p. 119]
(P66) Ellipse rally organizer who had the most contact with the defendant and was employee of the Campaign until Dec. 31, 2020 and after that a private citizen
[p. 119]
(P67) Shealah Craighead: Trump’s White House photographer
[p. 120]
(P68) Michael Flynn: Trump’s former National Security Advisor’s tweet supporting the election-denialist lawsuit is cited in the brief
[p. 133]
(P69) Peter Navarro: Trump’s then-trade advisor’s report on alleged voting irregularities appears in the brief
[p. 136]
(P70) Ivan Raiklin: A tweet by this “Campaign surrogate” appears in the brief
[p. 137]
(P71) Patrick Philbin: Trump’s deputy White House counsel, who urged Trump to send a calming message to stop the riot
[p. 141, 142]
(P72) Matt Morgan: Former White House lawyer Eric Herschmann’s deposition before the Jan. 6th Select Committee names Morgan as the Trump campaign staffer who gave him a tutorial on campaign basics and operations
[p. 151, 152]
(P73) This individual assured Herschmann that he could trust P22, a campaign attorney with whom Herschmann interacted with on a “near daily basis”
[p. 152, 157]
(P74) This person testified at a hearing in Georgia on Dec. 10, 2020
[p. 152]
(P75) Herschmann had the contact information of this managing director of a company on his phone
[p. 153]
(P76) This private attorney for Trump was “not optimistic” about the election challenges, according to Pence
[p. 13]
(P77) This person “handled ethics issues in the White House Counsel’s office”
Thanks to Clara Apt for substantial efforts preparing the unredacted document, and to Pooja Shah for technical guidance.