Trump administration taps election fraud crusader to help lead FEMA

By Gabe Cohen, CNN

(CNN) — After years of promoting baseless claims of voter fraud that President Donald Trump has frequently touted, a conservative activist has landed a top position at the Federal Emergency Management Agency.

The activist Gregg Phillips shot to fame after launching the narrative that millions of illegal votes were cast in the 2016 election. His claims, made through the Texas-based nonprofit True the Vote, quickly caught fire in right-wing media circles and were cited by Trump, who used them to try to justify why he lost the popular vote.

Now, Phillips has been tapped to head FEMA’s Office of Response and Recovery – a senior post overseeing the deployment of federal resources in the immediate aftermath of disasters – the Department of Homeland Security, which oversees FEMA, confirmed in a statement to CNN.

Phillips, who says he has more than four decades of experience in disasters and emergencies, has been a critic of FEMA. He traveled to North Carolina last year to offer aid in the aftermath of Hurricane Helene and posted on social media about FEMA’s “failure” in assisting hard-hit communities.

“This is probably the biggest failure I’ve ever seen,” he said in a video posted to LinkedIn.

At that time, FEMA began fending off a barrage of false claims – many amplified by Trump and his allies – alleging the agency discriminated against Republicans and diverted disaster aid to undocumented migrants, questionable narratives that have persisted throughout Trump’s first year in office.

CNN reached out to Phillips and FEMA for comment. The Handbasket was first to report details of the appointment.

Spreading voter fraud theories

Phillips is a longtime Republican operative and data consultant, having served as executive director of the Mississippi GOP as well as at the Mississippi Department of Human Services and the Texas Health and Human Services Commission.

After the 2016 election, Phillips rocketed into the spotlight with his unsubstantiated fraud claims, which were touted by Trump. But Phillips and the team at True the Vote refused to provide evidence – including when pressed in a 2017 CNN interview.

“We believe in this stuff to my core, in my bones,” Phillips said at the time. “A lot of people are saying, even people on the Trump side, ‘Who cares? He won.’ Well, I care.”

True the Vote ramped up its hunt for voter fraud in the 2020 election, making sensational and unsubstantiated claims about ballot stuffing in Georgia and other states.

In 2024, a Fulton County judge signed an order requiring the group to provide evidence for its claims after the Georgia secretary of state’s office issued a subpoena for it, according to the Associated Press. The Georgia Election Board later dismissed a lawsuit to enforce the subpoena because the alleged whistleblower the group was relying on for the information couldn’t be identified.

His work has drawn scrutiny from media and watchdog groups. In 2022, Phillips lashed out, blaming “journalistic terrorists.”

His work was prominently featured in Dinesh D’Souza’s widely criticized 2022 documentary “2000 Mules,” which claimed there was widespread voter fraud in the 2020 US presidential election involving “mules” delivering ballots to drop boxes.

Phillips is now poised to help steer FEMA at a critical moment, at a time when there are questions about the agency’s future and the administration’s priorities.

“He will support FEMA leadership as the agency advances reforms aligned with the direction set by President Trump and Secretary Noem, focused on clarifying federal responsibilities, strengthening coordination with states, and improving accountability in disaster operations,” a DHS spokesperson said in a statement.

A FEMA critic enters an agency battered by misinformation

As associate administrator for the Office of Response and Recovery, Phillips will oversee the deployment of resources in the aftermath of disasters – decisions that shape the speed and effectiveness of lifesaving support and the long-term recovery of communities hit by catastrophe. A senior FEMA official called it the “second most important role in the agency behind the administrator.”

“This person will make decisions that determine whether people live or die. Whether we have search and rescue in the areas needed, whether we have the right federal partners activated, whether major highways are reopened, whether people get checks when their homes are destroyed,” another high-ranking FEMA official in disaster response said. “They can truly bring the full force of all the agencies in the federal government to help or they can abandon our fellow citizens in a time of need,” the official added, explaining that the appointment of Phillips implies the latter.

Phillips has been a vocal critic of FEMA. In a post this fall, he wrote, “I’ve seen the failures up close and personal, watching people suffer. I’ve seen the best of America’s contractors walk away in disgust over the inept FEMA contract managers.”

“It is almost always true that those with a Christ centered approach show up first and leave last bringing hearts, hands and supplies when darkness hits,” the post continued. “FEMA has taken credit for their work — pushing DEI and ‘woke’ even into this program. The fails have been epic.”

Phillips also highlighted what he called a “meaningful and productive call” with Trump and then-acting FEMA Administrator David Richardson, writing, “for the first time in decades, I am optimistic we have the beginning of the fix.”

FEMA itself has been battered by misinformation and conspiracy theories for more than a year, dating back to the 2024 campaign. In the aftermath of Hurricane Helene, Trump falsely claimed on the campaign trail that the agency was discriminating against Republican areas and funneling disaster aid to undocumented immigrants.

By January, the rhetoric escalated. Trump and Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem, whose department oversees FEMA, vowed to eliminate the agency altogether.

Since then, administration officials have portrayed FEMA as partisan, bloated, and in desperate need of drastic reform or even elimination. “We are cleaning house at FEMA to make this dysfunctional agency work for the American people the way that it was intended,” Noem said in September. Now, Phillips is poised to play a central role in that process.

Later this week, the newly formed FEMA Review Council – created by Trump and co-chaired by Noem – will vote on sweeping recommendations to reform the agency, with the final plan headed to the White House for approval.

This is happening as climate change fuels more intense storms, creating increasingly catastrophic conditions for communities nationwide.

Many current and former FEMA officials say that reforming the agency could be a positive step, but warn that efforts to dismantle it are putting American lives at risk.

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