Donald Trump has given notice that he is dismissing his lawsuit against Iowa pollster Ann Selzer over her poll that showed Kamala Harris with an unexpected lead in the state just days before the 2024 election.
“Plaintiffs President Donald J. Trump, Representative Mariannette Miller-Meeks, and Former State Senator Bradley Zaun, give notice of their dismissal of this action without prejudice pursuant to Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 41(1)(A)(i),” Trump’s legal team wrote in a filing in federal court in Iowa on Monday.
The Des Moines Register, Tribune Co. and Gannett also were named as defendants in the case.
Robert Corn-Revere, representing Selzer, said via email, “We are aware of the Trump team’s voluntary dismissal. There is not settlement in the case. We are reviewing next steps as we continue to defend J. Ann Selzer’s First Amendment rights.”
Trump sued Selzer in December claiming violation of the Iowa Consumer Fraud Act. He claimed that the poll, which turned out to be an outlier as he won the state handily, was election interference. Selzer’s poll, released the weekend before the election, showed Harris up by 3 percentage points. Trump won the state by more than 13 points.
Corn-Revere is chief counsel for the Foundation for Equal Rights and Expression, or FIRE. In January, FIRE said of the lawsuit, “The notion that officials can recast the electorate as ‘consumers’ to punish political speech or news they don’t like is squarely at odds with the First Amendment. Yet it’s a theory increasingly advanced by partisans on both the left and the right. From the left, there are calls to regulate ‘misinformation’ on social issues and, from the right, calls to impose ‘accountability’ on news media for their political commentary.”
Trump’s attorney, Edward Paltzik, did not immediately return a request for comment.
Trump sued CBS in October over the way that a 60 Minutes interview with Kamala Harris was edited. He claimed violation of a Texas consumer law. On Monday, attorneys for Trump and CBS said they were in advance settlement negotiations.
