Georgia officials open investigation into Trump’s attempt to overturn election results in state

The Georgia Secretary of State has officially opened an investigation into Donald Trump's attempts to overturn his election loss to Joe Biden there.

The investigation comes after the former president was recorded on a phone call to Brad Raffensperger pressuring him to "find" enough votes to reverse his defeat.

Mr Raffensperger's office described the investigation as "fact-finding and administrative" in nature, reports say.

“The Secretary of State’s office investigates complaints it receives,” spokesman Walter Jones told Reuters.

“Any further legal efforts will be left to the attorney general,” he added.

The January phone call by Mr Trump was part of a concerted effort on his part to pressure Republican officials in the battleground state to help him defeat Mr Biden.

Mr Trump lost the state by more than 11,000 votes and repeatedly claimed that election fraud was to blame for his defeat and Mr Biden taking the state's 16 electoral college votes.

Mr Biden was the first Democrat to carry the state in a presidential election since 1992.

But officials repeatedly debunked the false claims by Mr Trump and his supporters and confirmed Mr Biden's victory after a string of recounts and examination of voting machines.

Mr Raffensperger and other election officials were subjected to death threats and needed police protection after the ex-president's claims of fraud in the state.

Mr Trump repeatedly called on him to resign and referred to the state's governor Brian Kemp as "hapless" and said he regretted supporting him.

Fani Willis, the Democratic district attorney of Fulton County, Georgia, is also considering a criminal investigation of Mr Trump's actions, according to the New York Times.

Legal experts say that Mr Trump's call may have violated state laws on election fraud and conspiracy, as well as "intentional interference" of an election official doing their job.