Do it right or don t do it : Arizona s top elections officer warns of serious problems with ballot recount
Secretary of State Katie Hobbs observers list 13 concerns, from slim details to Kern s presence. If left uncorrected, she could haul audit leaders back into court. Author: Brahm Resnik Updated: 7:14 PM MST May 5, 2021
PHOENIX In a sharply worded letter Tuesday to one of her predecessors as Arizona’s top elections officer, Democratic Secretary of State Katie Hobbs is warning Ken Bennett to bring the Republican election audit he’s overseeing into compliance with state laws and regulations.
“I’m not sure what compelled you to oversee this audit,” Hobbs writes. “But I’d like to assume you took this role with the best of intentions. It is those intentions I appeal to now: either do it right, or don’t do it at all.”
Temporary workers are being hired to help pick up the pace of Senate Republicans ballot recount. Author: Brahm Resnik Updated: 1:09 PM MST May 5, 2021
PHOENIX The Arizona recount of last fall s presidential election is now poised to drag into the summer, after Senate Republicans had forecast wrapping it up in the next 10 days.
The recount s glacial pace over its first 10 days has forced the Republicans audit team to double the number of ballot counters, by hiring temporary workers.
Taxpayers won t have to foot the bill for the temps, according to the Senate audit s spokesman.
But the audit s major funding sources don t have to reveal who did pay the bill.
Fact-check: Is an election audit in Arizona confirming the rumors that Trump put secret watermarks on ballots? By Tom Kertscher and Amy Sherman, PolitiFact.com
Trump hurt, not helped, Republican candidates in Arizona
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Facebook posts: An audit of the 2020 election in Maricopa County, Ariz., “is confirming the rumors that real ballots have a special watermark.”
PolitiFact s ruling: False
Here s why: Nearly six months after Joe Biden defeated former President Donald Trump, contractors hired by Arizona Senate Republicans are auditing results in Maricopa County, home to Phoenix and the state Capitol, where some Republicans have made allegations of widespread voter fraud.
PolitiFact s ruling: False
Here s why: Nearly six months after Joe Biden defeated former President Donald Trump, contractors hired by Arizona Senate Republicans are auditing results in Maricopa County, home to Phoenix and the state Capitol, where some Republicans have made allegations of widespread voter fraud.
These claims have been dismissed in court and refuted by a sampled hand count of ballots. Maricopa also hired two independent firms to conduct a forensic audit of its tabulation equipment. The audit found no abnormalities.
But a new spin on an old conspiracy theory has emerged during the recount. It builds on a debunked narrative that Trump’s administration put secret watermarks on official ballots to trick cheating Democrats. (Pants on Fire!)