'You will vote for Trump on Election Day or we will come after you' (Iranian 'Voter Threat Emails', DOJ indictment page)
Page 5 of a 2021 U.S. indictment quoting in full the threatening email sent to registered Democrats in October 2020: 'We are in possession of all your information... You will vote for Trump on Election Day or we will come after you... We will know which candidate you voted for. I would take this seriously if I were you.' The tell: a claim of total surveillance of the recipient's vote, joined to a threat, with one demanded action, changing party registration, as proof of compliance.
- Date
- October 2020
- Period
- Contemporary
- Made by
- Emennet Pasargad (formerly Eeleyanet Gostar), Iran-based contractor, as charged in the U.S. indictment of Kazemi and Kashian; emails purportedly from the Proud Boys
- Region
- Middle East and North Africa
- Country
- Iran
- Medium
- Document
- Issuer type
- Covert network
- Regime
- Islamic Republic of Iran
- Leader
- Hassan Rouhani
- Audience
- Foreign public
- Purpose
- Mobilize or secure compliance
- Themes
- Elections and party politics, Security and surveillance
- Event
- 2020 US Election
- Techniques
- Fear appeal
- Source
- Impersonated Source falsified: fake personas, outlets or documents
- Source
- U.S. Department of Justice (justice.gov), indictment, United States v. Kazemi and Kashian, retrieved September 29, 2026
- Rights
- Public domain (U.S. government work)
U.S. Department of Justice, indictment, United States v. Kazemi and Kashian (S.D.N.Y., unsealed 18 Nov. 2021), p. 5.
Text on the object
(the "Voter Threat Emails"). The Voter Threat Emails, which included the name and street address of the recipient, read:
We are in possession of all your information (email, address, telephone... everything).
You are currently registered as a Democrat and we know this because we have gained access into the entire voting infrastructure. You will vote for Trump on Election Day or we will come after you. Change your party affiliation to Republican to let us know you received our message and will comply. We will know which candidate you voted for.
I would take this seriously if I were you.
7. In order to execute this campaign, the members of the conspiracy used, among other things, computer servers around the world that they had previously compromised.
8. Additionally, in or about September and October 2020, the members of the conspiracy obtained unauthorized access to the computer network of an American media company ("Media Company-1"), which provided a content management system ("CMS") for dozens of newspapers and other publications. Prior to the 2020 U.S. Presidential election, the members of the conspiracy tested their ability to modify and create content on Media Company-1's compromised system, which would have provided them another vehicle for further disseminating false claims concerning the election.
5Typewritten court page. The email text is set as an indented block quotation; the paragraph numbers 7 and 8 and page number 5 are the indictment's.
