But state election officials — many of them gathered this week for a national conference — projected confidence afterward, saying their work has already withstood years of scrutiny following the 2020 election, and they have followed federal and state law. Sen. Alex Padilla, a California Democrat and former secretary of state, referenced the Fulton County search and called it a “wake-up call” for election officials. The FBI on Wednesday executed a broad search warrant at a Fulton County elections office as part of a federal investigation into the handling and preservation of 2020 election records. The FBI search followed earlier attempts by the Justice Department to obtain 2020 election records through the courts. States say their systems have already been testedFor election officials elsewhere, the Georgia search underscores just how atypical Fulton County’s situation has become.