FULTON COUNTY, GA — A federal court in Atlanta is hearing arguments as Fulton County sues the federal government to get back election records seized by the FBI.

The case comes after court-ordered mediation between the federal government and Fulton County failed.

County leaders and the elections board are seeking the return of more than 650 boxes of ballots and data from the 2020 election.

A U.S. District judge ruled the FBI agent who swore out the search warrant will not have to testify, citing concerns it could involve privileged investigation information.

Each side has been given two-and-a-half hours to present its case.

Fulton County Commission Chairman Robb Pitts has criticized the search warrant, saying, “That affidavit as I said wasn’t worth the paper it was printed on.”

Pitts also defended the county’s handling of elections, saying, “We’re ensuring that every legal vote that’s cast here is counted. Our elections have been open, they’ve been fair, they’ve been transparent.”

Pitts also said, “We all complied with whatever the FBI was seeking based upon that search warrant, because I have no quarrel whatsoever with the men and women with the FBI, they’re simply doing their jobs.”

The county has long denied the president’s claims that it helped steal the election for Joe Biden and says the search warrant that led to the raid lacked probable cause.

WSB Radio’s Veronica Waters contributed to this story.