Barr authorizes investigation into 'substantial allegations' of voting irregularities despite scant evidence

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Attorney General William Barr on Monday gave federal prosecutors the green light to pursue "substantial allegations" of voting irregularities before the 2020 presidential election is certified next month, even though little evidence of fraud has been put forth.

In a memo obtained by Fox News, Barr advised that allegations concerning voter fraud “should be handled with great care” and that “specious, speculative, fanciful or far-fetched claims should not be a basis for initiating federal inquiries.”

Attorney General William Barr leaves the office of Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell of Ky., on Capitol Hill in Washington. (AP)

Barr’s actions give prosecutors the ability to circumvent longstanding DOJ policy that normally would prohibit such overt actions before the election is formally certified.

He emphasized that his authorizing federal prosecutors to pursue “substantial allegations” should not indicate that the DOJ has “concluded that voting irregularities have impacted the outcome of any election.”

Barr said that investigations can be conducted if there are clear and credible allegations of irregularities that could effect the outcome of a federal election in an individual state.

“Any investigation of claims of irregularities that, if true, would clearly not impact the outcome of a federal election in an individual State should normally be deferred until after the election certification process is completed,” Barr wrote.

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A DOJ official told Fox News that no one at the White House, including President Trump or any lawmakers, has asked Barr for this authorization.

Barr’s action comes days after Fox News projected that Democrat Joe Biden defeated Trump in the general election. Trump has not conceded the election and he is instead claiming, without evidence, that there has been a widespread, multi-state conspiracy by Democrats to skew the vote tally in Biden's favor.

Biden holds a sizable lead in multiple battleground states and there has been no indication of enough improperly counted or illegally cast votes that would shift the outcome.

Election officials from parties have stated that the election went relatively well, despite minor issues like broken voting machines and ballots that were either miscast or lost.

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States have until Dec. 8 to resolve election disputes, including recounts and court contests over the results. The Electoral College meets on Dec. 14 to finalize the outcome.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.