Smartmatic and OAN Settle Defamation Suit

The voting technology company Smartmatic reached a settlement on Tuesday in its defamation lawsuit against One America News Network, a far-right broadcaster, over the amplification of election falsehoods about the 2020 presidential election.

The terms of the settlement were confidential and could not immediately be learned.

Smartmatic filed the lawsuit in 2021, accusing OAN of amplifying baseless claims that Smartmatic had been involved in rigging the presidential election through its voting machines.

A filing for a dismissal of the case with prejudice, meaning it cannot be retried, was submitted by Smartmatic’s lawyers to the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia on Tuesday.

Lawyers for Smartmatic and OAN did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

Smartmatic also sued Fox News and Newsmax for defamation over their coverage of election conspiracy theories. Those cases are ongoing.

The Smartmatic settlement comes a year after Fox News agreed to pay $787.5 million to Dominion Voting Systems, another election technology company, to settle their defamation lawsuit over the broadcasting of similar conspiracy theories around the 2020 election.

Dominion has also sued OAN. That litigation remains underway and a trial date has not yet been set.

This is a developing story. Check back for updates.