Newsmax has settled the defamation lawsuit from voting machine company Smartmatic over the right-wing network’s false reporting on fraud claims in the 2020 presidential election.
A deal was reached Thursday as the two sides were headed for trial in a Delaware court where jury selection was scheduled to begin.
“Newsmax is pleased to announce it has resolved the litigation brought by Smartmatic through a confidential settlement,” the Boca Raton, Fla.-based network said in a statement.
Smartmatic’s suit said Newsmax provided a platform for its hosts, Donald Trump and the former president’s attorneys and allies to falsely claim that the company’s software was manipulated to deliver the election for President Biden.
Smartmatic’s equipment was used only in Los Angeles County in 2020 and not in any of the swing states that helped decide the election.
The claims were given ample airtime on Newsmax despite a lack of credible evidence of fraud and a complete rejection of Trump’s legal challenges in the courts. Smartmatic says it lost business because of the bogus statements.
Smartmatic has a similar $2.7-billion defamation suit against Fox News that could go to trial in New York next year.
