Newsmax, a prominent conservative cable news channel, has agreed to pay $67 million to Dominion Voting Systems to resolve a high-profile defamation lawsuit over false claims that Dominion’s voting machines rigged the 2020 presidential election. The settlement, revealed in filings with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission and various court documents, marks yet another chapter in the ongoing legal reckoning for media outlets that amplified conspiracy theories following the contentious 2020 race between Joe Biden and Donald Trump.
Dominion originally filed the lawsuit in 2021, seeking a staggering $1.6 billion in damages. The company alleged that Newsmax knowingly aired baseless allegations that Dominion’s technology was manipulated to help Biden defeat Trump. According to Reuters, Dominion’s complaint argued that these false claims caused the company and its employees extensive harm—including lost revenue and even death threats—while fueling widespread mistrust in the U.S. electoral system.
The settlement, which Newsmax disclosed in an SEC filing on August 15, 2025, avoids a potentially explosive trial that had been scheduled for later this year. As detailed by CNN and other outlets, Newsmax paid $27 million upfront and will pay the remaining $40 million in two installments: $20 million by January 15, 2026, and another $20 million by January 15, 2027. The agreement was reached just days after Delaware Superior Court Judge Eric Davis ruled that Newsmax had indeed broadcast false and defamatory statements about Dominion’s role in the 2020 election. However, the judge left the questions of actual malice and damages to be decided by a jury—a risk both sides ultimately chose to sidestep.
"We are pleased to have settled this matter," a Dominion spokesperson told CNN, declining to elaborate further. The settlement brings the total public payout by Newsmax for election-technology defamation to at least $107 million, when combined with a separate $40 million settlement with Smartmatic, another voting machine company that also sued Newsmax over similar claims.
For Dominion, the Newsmax agreement follows an even larger $787.5 million settlement reached with Fox News in April 2023. That deal, which was also struck on the eve of a scheduled trial, sent shockwaves through the media industry and underscored the enormous financial risks associated with broadcasting unsubstantiated conspiracy theories. As Forbes noted, Dominion’s legal victories have now netted the company more than $800 million in settlements.
Despite the eye-watering sum, Newsmax has not admitted wrongdoing and was not required to issue an apology or on-air retraction as part of the settlement. In a series of statements, the network maintained that its coverage was “fair, balanced, and conducted within professional standards of journalism,” as reported by NBC News and other outlets. Newsmax also asserted that it “believed it was critically important for the American people to hear both sides of the election disputes that arose in 2020.”
The company’s leadership, however, has been openly critical of the Delaware court system and Judge Davis in particular. According to Reuters and CNN, Newsmax accused Davis of ruling in ways that “strongly favored the plaintiffs and limited Newsmax’s ability to defend itself.” The network claimed it was being punished for not being “sympathetic to Biden, who is from Delaware,” and argued that the judge’s refusal to allow the jury to consider Fox News’ previous settlement with Dominion deprived Newsmax of a full defense. Newsmax CEO Chris Ruddy even suggested that the case highlighted risks for companies incorporated in Delaware, echoing concerns voiced by other business leaders after Elon Musk moved several business incorporations out of the state following unfavorable court rulings.
Legal experts, however, have generally praised Judge Davis for his evenhanded approach. As CNN pointed out, Davis was appointed to the bench by a Democratic governor in 2010 and promoted to president judge of the Delaware Superior Court earlier this year. Delaware Governor Matt Meyer commended Davis for his “fair and balanced approach to the law.”
The case against Newsmax was just one of several legal battles stemming from the aftermath of the 2020 election, when Trump and many of his allies—including Newsmax guests like Sidney Powell and Mike Lindell—spread unfounded claims of widespread election fraud. While multiple court rulings and investigations by election officials found no evidence of fraud, the conspiracy theories persisted, with some factions of Trump supporters continuing to echo them into 2024 and beyond.
In a nod to these ongoing disputes, former President Trump took to social media on the same day the Newsmax settlement was announced, calling for the elimination of mail-in ballots and “seriously controversial” voting machines, though he did not name any specific companies. According to Forbes, court filings in Special Counsel Jack Smith’s now-dropped prosecution against Trump suggested that the former president privately mocked the more outlandish fraud claims, likening them to “Star Trek.”
Notably, Newsmax has sought to defend its editorial choices by highlighting a “clarification” segment it aired in December 2020, in which the network stated it had no evidence that Dominion manipulated any votes. However, as Delaware’s Judge Davis ruled in April 2025, Newsmax’s broadcasts contained information that “would likely cause reasonable viewers to think significantly less favorably about Dominion than if the viewers knew the truth.”
The fallout from these lawsuits has been significant not only for the media companies involved, but also for the broader debate over the limits of free speech and the responsibilities of news organizations. Newsmax argued that the court’s actions represented “a direct attack on free speech and a free press,” warning that such cases pose a “serious threat to free speech.” Yet, as the settlements demonstrate, there are high financial—and reputational—costs when media outlets cross the line into defamation, especially on issues as sensitive and consequential as the integrity of American elections.
With the $67 million settlement now public, Newsmax has resolved all litigation related to its coverage of the 2020 election, at least with respect to Dominion and Smartmatic. The company has since reincorporated in Florida, citing alleged bias in Delaware courts. Meanwhile, the legal and political battles over the 2020 election’s legacy continue to reverberate, serving as a stark reminder of the lasting impact of misinformation and the enduring tensions between press freedom and accountability.
