Author: Rachel Alexander

Explosive Testimony at Senate Elections and House Municipal Oversight & Elections Joint Meeting Accuses Hobbs, Fontes, Runbeck, and Judges of Racketeering

Rachel Alexander

The Arizona Legislature’s Senate Elections Committee and House Municipal Oversight & Elections Committee held a joint hearing on Thursday featuring testimony from several people involved in researching the voter disenfranchisement that occurred in 2020 and 2022. The testimony by Arizona forensic investigator Jacqueline Breger accused multiple statewide and county officials, including Governor Katie Hobbs and Secretary of State Adrian Fontes, of racketeering connected to the Sinaloa Cartel. Democrats on those committees refused to attend the hearing.

Breger said she has been working with a law firm investigating multistate racketeering and corruption, but in the process discovered election fraud as well. She said neither she nor the attorney she works for are very political; he didn’t vote in the last two elections and she is a registered independent. While investigating racketeering involving the Sinaloa Cartel, their team accidentally discovered election fraud, she said, including finding that Maricopa County’s database is being infiltrated from the outside. “The Maricopa County database has absolutely no integrity whatsoever,” she declared. “Racketeering enterprises are inextricably intertwined with election fraud.”

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Arizona AG Kris Mayes Goes After Brnovich for Disagreeing with Two of His Staff on Voter Disenfranchisement

Rachel Alexander

Democrat Attorney General Kris Mayes, who replaced Mark Brnovich in office last month, released documents showing that two employees disagreed with Brnovich on the credibility of some of the complaints the office received about voter disenfranchisement. Mayes issued a press release on Wednesday based on the opinions of two employees, Assistant Chief Special Agent Keith Thomas of the Criminal Division and Attorney General (AGO) Chief Special Agent Reginald “Reggie” Grigsby.

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Registered Republicans in Arizona and Maricopa County Continue to Increase Their Lead Over Democrats

Rachel Alexander

Registered Republicans in Arizona increased their lead over Democrats from about three percent to over four percent over the past year. This is the biggest gap since 2018.

Similarly, in Maricopa County, Republicans increased their lead from about four percent more than Democrats to almost 4.5 percent more, according to the latest numbers from the Arizona Secretary of State.

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Arizona Secretary of State Fontes Refuses to Accept HAVA Complaint About Election Discrepancies

Rachel Alexander

Gail Golec, who unsuccessfully ran for Maricopa County Supervisor last year, and 10 other Arizonans filed a complaint with Arizona Secretary of State (AZSOS) Adrian Fontes last month alleging violations of the Help America Vote Act (HAVA) during last year’s midterm election, but the office rejected it. The complaint followed the procedures laid out in federal statutes, however the AZSOS responded and said the complaint didn’t establish any violations to investigate under HAVA.

Golec told The Arizona Sun Times that her team drafted the complaint based on the language in HAVA, so it didn’t make any sense that the AZSOS claimed the election discrepancies weren’t covered by HAVA. She said the problem is fundamentally how the AZSOS is viewing elections, which she believes is dismissive of real complaints. “It’s not ‘fair and equal’ elections, it’s ‘free and equal’ per Article II Section 1 of the Constitution,” she said. “We’re going to turn the lights on to stop the gaslighting and take this country back.”

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Kari Lake Denounces Maricopa County Leadership’s ‘Inappropriate’ Comments After Court Dismisses Case

Rachel Alexander

The Arizona Court of Appeals dismissed Kari Lake’s appeal of her election lawsuit on Thursday, stating that voters were not disenfranchised. Lake said she intends to appeal to the Arizona Supreme Court, as her opponents and Maricopa County officials praised the dismissal. Maricopa County election officials have frequently criticized Lake, causing some to doubt their impartiality. The Maricopa County Supervisors are responsible for overseeing elections on Election Day, while Maricopa County Recorder Stephen Richer has oversight of early balloting.

Clint Hickman, chair of the Maricopa County Supervisors, issued a statement on Thursday referring to Lake’s legal arguments as “questionable mathematics.” He said, “When a candidate for office asks a court to throw out valid votes, you have to wonder how committed to election integrity they really are.” He said Lake has been rejected “at the polls, when Arizona voters rejected her bid to be governor…”

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Hobbs Revokes $210 Million in COVID-19 Relief Grants Awarded by Ducey

Rachel Alexander

Since becoming the governor of Arizona, Democrat Katie Hobbs has started undoing some of the work done by her predecessor Doug Ducey. This past week, Hobbs blocked $210 million in COVID-19 relief grants Ducey had awarded to businesses.

Hobbs’ administration said Ducey gave 19 grants to 16 businesses during his last three days in office; on Dec. 30-Jan. 1. Her aides claim he violated state procurement law, which requires competitive bids in order to award money. Those requirements were waived during COVID-19 through December 29 by the Arizona Department of Administration. After Ducey’s emergency declaration ended in March 2022, the waiver was extended twice. 

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Arizona State Senator Sponsors Bills to Call for a Convention of States

Rachel Alexander

Sen. Anthony Kern (R-Glendale) is proposing three bills that ask Congress to call for a Convention of States as allowed for in Article V of the U.S. Constitution, so the states can vote on and adopt amendments to the Constitution. Once two-thirds of state legislatures demand a Convention of States, also known as an Article V Convention, the Constitution mandates it. The states then run the convention, passing and ratifying amendments with a three-quarters majority — without Congress, the president, or governors involved.

SCR 1014 would propose a “federal fiscal responsibility” amendment, and states that enough states met the threshold in 1979 but Congress failed to order a convention. 

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Booted from GoFundMe, Legal Defense Funds for Rancher Who Fatally Shot Illegal Immigrant Raise over $350,000 on GiveSendGo

Rachel Alexander

George Alan Kelly, a southern Arizona rancher, received over $350,000 in legal defense fund aid on GiveSendGo after being kicked off of GoFundMe for trying to raise money for his case.

Kelly is being charged with first-degree, premeditated murder for allegedly shooting an illegal immigrant on his property on January 30. GoFundMe took off multiple legal defense funds for Kelly because the company said these funds violated its terms of service about raising money “to cover the legal defense of anyone formally charged with an alleged violent crime.”

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Computer Programmer Testifies to Arizona Senate Election Committee About Voting Machine Manipulation

Rachel Alexander

The Arizona Senate Election Committee heard testimony Monday from computer programmer Clinton Eugene Curtis about how susceptible voting machines are to manipulation. Curtis, a Democrat who previously worked as a programmer for NASA, DOD and other defense agencies, famously testified in 2007 to the U.S. House Judiciary Committee about how he programmed voting machines so he could manipulate them without being detected. 

His presentation began with a clip of his 2007 testimony to Congress, where he said it only took 100 lines of code to change the results of an election. He said county election officials would not be able to detect it, unless they had access to the source code or could compare the count to the paper ballot count. He showed a second video clip, which compiled statements by prominent Democrats expressing their concerns on how voting machines are hackable. 

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Cochise County Attorney Who Threatened and Opposed County Supervisors on Hand Counting Ballots and Certifying Election Arrested for ‘Super Extreme’ DUI

Rachel Alexander

Cochise County Attorney Brian McIntyre was arrested early in the morning on January 28 for a “super extreme” DUI. McIntyre, who became nationally known for feuding with the Cochise County Supervisors over their efforts to conduct a hand count of ballots during the 2022 midterm election and reject their vote certifying the results, blew a .21 BAC, more than twice the legal limit. 

Fernando “Jack” Dona, Master Sergeant, US Army (Retired), a retired U.S. Army Intelligence Electronic Warfare Aviation Field Systems Engineer and former Staff Sergeant Major of the Training Development and Support Directorate at the U.S. Army Intelligence Center at Fort Huachuca, called for McIntyre to resign. “Sir, if you had any honor and integrity you would have already immediately resigned your position as County Attorney, and thrown yourself at the mercy of the court. The above video of your arrest for EXTREME DUI is an absolute disgrace and embarrassment to Cochise County, Arizona. 

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Maricopa County Recorder Stephen Richer and Arizona Secretary of State Adrian Fontes Discuss Adding More Ballot Drop Boxes

Rachel Alexander

Secretary of State Adrian Fontes, whose victory is being challenged by Republican candidate Mark Finchem, hosted a panel discussion with election fraud denier Maricopa County Recorder Stephen Richer this week.

ABC-15 Data Analyst Garrett Archer moderated the event at the Valley Bar in Phoenix, the bipartisan pair discussed the 2022 midterm election.

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Arizona Senate Committee on Director Nominations Rejects Hobbs’ ‘Extreme’ Choice to Lead the Department of Health

Rachel Alexander

The newly formed Arizona Senate Committee on Director Nominations held a hearing Thursday to consider whether to accept Arizona Governor Katie Hobbs’ nominee for director of the Arizona Department of Health Services, Dr. Theresa Cullen. Chaired by Sen. Jake Hoffman (R-Queen Creek), who characterized Cullen as “extreme,” the committee interviewed the former director of the Pima County Department of Public Health then voted down party lines, 3-2, to stop her nomination from going forward to the whole Senate for a vote.

Cullen tried to repeatedly distance herself from the Pima County Supervisors’ decisions regarding COVID-19. At one point, Cullen said she did not attend their meetings. But Hoffman pulled up a photo of her at one of the meetings. While she was sworn to tell the truth at the hearing, the legislature generally does not take action when speakers perjure themselves. 

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Former State Legislator Paul Boyer Announces Candidacy for Glendale Mayor

Rachel Alexander

Former Arizona state legislator Paul Boyer announced this week that he is running for mayor of Glendale. The current mayor, Republican Jerry Weiers, assumed that office in 2013 after serving eight years in the Arizona House.

Boyer submitted an op-ed to the Daily Independent on Monday explaining his decision. He criticized the legislature for attempting to pass laws that would stop cities and towns from taking certain actions.

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Abe Hamadeh and RNC File Reply Supporting Motion for a New Trial in Election Contest, ‘Closest Statewide Race in History’ Requires ‘Exacting Review’

Rachel Alexander

Abe Hamadeh’s election challenge for attorney general continues to wind its way through the court system, with his attorneys filing a reply in Mohave County Superior Court supporting their motion for a new trial on Monday. The Consolidated Reply in Support of Plaintiffs’ Motion for a New Trial addressed the claims brought up in the response from defendant Kris Mayes, who was declared the winner in the race. The lawsuit, which included the Republican National Committee and Republican Jeanne Kentch of Mohave County as plaintiffs, was also filed against Secretary of State Adrian Fontes.

Hamadeh’s reply brief, led by former Attorney General Election Integrity Unit civil attorney Jen Wright, emphasized the race’s closeness as a reason for a do-over.

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Robert Kiyosaki Responds to Arizona State University Faculty Members Condemning Event Featuring Him, Dennis Prager, and Charlie Kirk

Rachel Alexander

Arizona State University’s Barrett Honors College is sponsoring a “Health, Wealth & Happiness” panel discussion on February 8 featuring Rich Dad Poor Dad bestselling author Robert Kiyosaki, conservative leaders Dennis Prager and Charlie Kirk, and wellness expert Dr. Radha Gopalan. Most of the faculty at Barrett — 37 of 47 members as of February 2 — denounced Kiyosaki, Prager, and Kirk in a February 1 letter addressed to the dean. Kiyosaki spoke to The Arizona Sun Times about the criticism.

“If they picket me, this won’t be the first time I’ve been received like this,” he said. Kiyosaki served in the Marines as a gunship pilot during the Vietnam War, and when he returned home, protesters targeted him and his fellow Marines and spit on them. Kiyosaki has written over 26 books related to finance, and Rich Dad Poor Dad is the best-selling personal financial book of all time. 

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Arizona State University Student Finds Urinal in Women’s Restroom

Rachel Alexander

An Arizona State University (ASU) student who serves as vice chair of the East Valley Young Republicans discovered a urinal in a women’s restroom and asserted ASU is “putting men’s urinals in the women’s restroom!”

Rachel Hope tweeted on Jan. 26, “ASU caves to the far left by putting men’s urinals in the women’s restroom!! 🤢🤡.” Along with the tweet she displayed a video of entering a women’s restroom and encountering a urinal inside a stall next to a toilet.

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Moderate GOP PAC Spent Only $700,000 of $1.8 Million Raised Helping Republican Candidates

Rachel Alexander

The Republican Legislative Victory Fund (RLVF), a PAC supporting moderate Republicans, posted its end-of-year campaign finance report recently, and of $1.8 million raised, only about $700,000 was spent on independent expenditures (IEs) to support candidates. Almost all of that was spent during the last 15 days of the general election, which Arizona Free Enterprise Club President Scot Mussi told The Arizona Sun Times was well after many of the strongest attacks came against Republican candidates in September.

“I am hearing Camelback Strategies and others associated with the 2022 Victory Fund are trying to take credit for ‘saving’ the majorities at the legislature,” Mussi said. “If anything, their actions contributed to the slim majorities. They did nothing to help Michelle Pena in LD 23, which if she didn’t win we wouldn’t even have a majority.”

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Border 911 Conference in Phoenix Exposes How Bad Cartels, Human Trafficking and Fentanyl Have Become

Rachel Alexander

The America Project (TAP) held a conference on border security Saturday in Phoenix at the Hershberger Theater. The Border 911 event featured leading experts on human trafficking, cartels, and drugs coming over the border, including former acting ICE Director Tom Homan, who also served as a Border Patrol agent in Phoenix.

Homan said, “Under President Trump, we had the most secure border in my lifetime.” He discussed all the progress Trump made, such as getting countries to accept illegal immigrants back, Title 42 restrictions, and implementing the Remain in Mexico program.

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Testimony to Arizona Senate Election Committee Reveals Thousands of Misdemeanors Allegedly Committed by Maricopa County in 2022 Election

Rachel Alexander

The Arizona Senate’s Election Committee continued the second part of a hearing on Monday that began last week, featuring testimony from election integrity proponents. Shelby Busch, the co-founder of We the People AZ, and Heather Honey of Verify Vote, went over five areas where their team found apparent law violations by Maricopa County in the 2022 election.

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Packed Crowd Attends Kari Lake Rally Exposing Voter Disenfranchisement in Maricopa County

Rachel Alexander

At a standing-room-only event Sunday, Kari Lake signaled she is not giving up her legal battle to install her as the rightful Arizona governor instead of Democrat Katie Hobbs. Lake held a Save Arizona rally at Orange Tree Golf Club in Scottsdale with over a thousand in attendance, assuring her supporters she intended to fight until the “victorious end.” The mainstream media recently ran stories claiming Lake was switching her focus to running against Senator Kyrsten Sinema (I-AZ).

Lake focused her entire speech on election fraud. “They thought they could steal it and we would just go away,” she said to thunderous applause. “We had the greatest candidates in the country here in Arizona. We were running against some of the worst candidates in the history of Arizona. It didn’t matter if they rolled out brain-dead candidates,” she said, alluding to election fraud ensuring the Democrats’ victories. “The fix was in. They knew they didn’t have to campaign.”

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Arizona State University Student Convicted of Criminal Trespassing for Handing Out Copies of the Constitution on Campus Files Appeal

Rachel Alexander

Arizona State University (ASU) student Tim Tizon was convicted in October of criminal trespassing in the third degree for handing out copies of the U.S. Constitution on the school’s campus. University Lakes Justice of the Peace Tyler Kissell, a progressive, conducted the trial. The Liberty Justice Center is now representing Tizon with an appeal, which was filed on Thursday.

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Arizona Oath Keeper Described as ‘Cooking for Protesters’ on January 6 Convicted of Seditious Conspiracy

Rachel Alexander

A jury convicted Arizona Oath Keeper Edward Vallejo of seditious conspiracy and other charges on Monday for his involvement with the protest on January 6, 2021 at the U.S. Capitol. Three other Oath Keepers were also convicted of that and other lesser offenses. The 63-year-old Army veteran’s defense attorney, Matthew Peed, said he plans to appeal.

“Ed brought 30 days of food with him, not just for himself but for a group, and he believed he was going to a campground where he would set up a food kitchen and cook for protesters,” Peed described Vallejo’s role during opening statements. “And it would be kind of a, kind of like a festival.”

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Kari Lake Files Reply Brief with Arizona Court of Appeals in Election Contest Lawsuit

Rachel Alexander

Kari Lake’s election lawsuit contesting her loss to Democrat Katie Hobbs in the gubernatorial race is at the Arizona Court of Appeals after being dismissed by the trial court judge. Lake filed a reply on Tuesday to the responses from defendants Maricopa County and then-Secretary of State Hobbs.

The reply brief began, “Defendants ignore the trial court’s holdings, misstate the law, misstate material facts, and — unable to get their stories straight — contradict each other.” 

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Testimony to Arizona Senate Election Committee Reveals Almost Half the Ballots Ran Through Maricopa County Tabulators Failed

Rachel Alexander

The election committee of the Arizona Senate held a hearing on Monday featuring the results of an investigation into Maricopa County’s 2022 midterm election conducted by the election integrity group We the People AZ (WPAZ). Commissioned by outgoing Senate President Karen Fann (R-Prescott), the group submitted public records requests to Maricopa County Elections Department to obtain the data. The leader of WPAZ, Shelby Busch, testified to the committee chaired by State Senator Wendy Rogers (R-Flagstaff) that 464,926 ballots fed into tabulators on Election Day in Maricopa County, 217,305 were rejected, which is nearly a 50 percent failure rate.

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Maricopa County GOP Censures Republican Maricopa County Supervisors, Maricopa County Recorder Stephen Richer over Election Integrity at Annual Meeting

Rachel Alexander
Stephen Richer

The Maricopa County Republican Committee voted on January 14 at their annual meeting to censure Maricopa County Stephen Richer and the four Republican members of the Maricopa County Supervisors; Bill Gates, Thomas Galvin, Clint Hickman and Jack Sellers. The vote for the censure resolution was 1,460 for, 138 against, and 36 abstaining.

Maricopa County Member-at-Large Brian Ference told The Arizona Sun Times, “The PCs in Maricopa have spoken, overwhelmingly censuring Richer and the MCBOS, the key line being ‘Ceases immediately any and all recognition and support of the above individuals being censured and encourages all registered Republicans to expel them permanently from office.’”

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Judge Denies the City of Phoenix’s Motion to Dismiss Residents’ Lawsuit Over Homeless Encampment ‘The Zone’

Rachel Alexander

A lawsuit filed last August challenging “the largest homeless encampment in Arizona” is going ahead after a judge denied the City of Phoenix’s motion to dismiss. Residents who live near “the Zone,” which has grown to over 1,500 people, allege that the city has failed or refused to enforce criminal, health, or quality of life statutes to improve the Zone.

Maricopa County Superior Court Judge Stephen Tully said in his January 16 ruling that dismissal wasn’t warranted because the city didn’t meet the standard where “as a matter of law plaintiffs would not be entitled to relief under any interpretation of the facts susceptible of proof.” He found that the plaintiffs properly pleaded their case and supported a private cause of action for public nuisance.

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Former Arizona AG Attorney Joins Abe Hamadeh’s Election Challenge Team Due to New AG ‘Targeting’ Her

Rachel Alexander

The former Election Integrity Unit civil attorney for the Arizona Attorney General’s Office is making it clear she does not believe the new Attorney General is rightfully in office. Jennifer Wright, who resigned before Democrat Kris Mayes took office — but who Mayes’ office claimed was fired to journalists, causing Wright to start the process for a libel lawsuit — has joined the legal team of Mayes’ opponent, Republican Abe Hamadeh, who is challenging the results of the extremely close election. 

Wright tweeted that she initially turned down Hamadeh’s offer, but changed her mind “after @krismayes targeted me by falsely and unlawfully planting a hit on me on @azcentral.” She said “it became clear that left unchecked, the new admin intended to abuse their power.” 

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Kari Lake Responds to Rumor She Is Considering Running for U.S. Senate

Rachel Alexander

Kari Lake is appealing the dismissal of her lawsuit contesting the results of a botched election for Arizona governor, which placed her opponent, Democrat Katie Hobbs, in office, but rumors are swirling in the mainstream media that she is moving on and considering running for U.S. Senate.

The rumors began when CNN reporter Kate Sullivan tweeted on Monday, “I’m told Kari Lake is considering running for the US Senate seat held by Kyrsten Sinema in 2024.” Newsweek published an article titled, “Kari Lake Might Have Finally Given up Her Hopes of Becoming Governor.”

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Hundreds Show up to Show Their Respect to Arizona’s Legendary Legislator Russell Pearce at His Funeral

Rachel Alexander

One of the most well-known and revered Arizona legislators in recent years, Russell Pearce of Mesa, passed away on January 5, and his funeral was held on Monday. Hundreds packed the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints central stake center in Mesa to listen to eulogies from family and friends, most of who were brought to tears speaking of his love for Arizona, his family, church, God, and the Constitution. 

His sister Kathy Pearce spoke about “the work he did to protect our freedoms.” He “kept out country free so we could have the rights we do,” she said.

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Republican Faction Works with Democrats to Move the Party Left, Push Open Primaries, Ranked Choice Voting

Rachel Alexander

With Democrats taking over the top leadership positions in Arizona, progressives are boldly moving onto their next steps in the state. Save Democracy Arizona (SDA) is looking into getting a ballot initiative that would open up primary elections to everyone and possibly implement ranked choice voting. The new group is composed of Democrats and moderate Republicans who seek to stop conservative Republicans from getting elected to office.

Arizona has a semi-closed primary system, meaning Republicans and Democrats automatically receive a ballot in the primary, but independents and other political parties must request one of those. With an open primary, any voter can vote with any party ballot. Save Democracy executive board member Sarah Brown Smallhouse explained why the group wants the change. “Because so few people (request a ballot), we almost have closed primaries,” she said. In recent years, independents have outnumbered both Republicans and Democrats in much of the state. 

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Attorney Files Lawsuit Against Judge Who Dismissed Kari Lake’s Election Contest

Rachel Alexander

Ryan Heath, an attorney who started The Gavel Project to engage in lawfare against woke ideology, has filed a lawsuit against the judge who dismissed Kari Lake’s election lawsuit. Submitted on Monday, the Writ of Mandamus demands that Maricopa County Superior Court Judge Peter Thompson vacate his ruling and award the election to Lake.

Heath told The Arizona Sun Times he doesn’t really know where Thompson came up with the really high bar he required Lake’s attorneys to prove in order to overturn the election. Thompson required showing by clear and convincing evidence that the misconduct was intentional and meant to change the election, was performed by one of the appropriate people in charge, and that it changed the election. Heath said this was the wrong standard, he should have relied on Reyes v. Cuming, a 1997 Arizona case involving similar circumstances, where signatures on the envelopes were not compared to the voter registration list, violating a non-technical statute.

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New Arizona AG Kris Mayes Hires Colleague of Progressive Lawyer Marc Elias as Chief Deputy

Rachel Alexander

Arizona’s new Democratic Attorney General Kris Mayes hired progressive attorney Dan Barr as her chief deputy, according to AZ Law and Barr’s LinkedIn profile. However, insiders say the longtime attorney for mainstream media did not resign from the Democratic firm Perkins Coie, where he worked with progressive attorney Marc Elias, until after he started in the position, which would be a conflict of interest, especially if he was involved with any litigation involving the Arizona Attorney General’s Office (AAGO).

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Arizona AG Election Integrity Unit Attorney Starts Process for Libel Lawsuit over Media Claims She Was Fired

Rachel Alexander

Jennifer Wright, the Election Integrity Unit (EIU) civil attorney for Arizona Attorney General Mark Brnovich until his second term ended earlier this month, resigned before newly elected Democrat Kris Mayes took office, but there are reports in the media spreading that she was fired. Wright gave The Arizona Republic “notice and demand for a correction prior to filing legal action pursuant to A.R.S. 12-653.2.”

Wright believes the false statements were made in order to discredit the work she did investigating voter fraud.

Wright tangled with the Maricopa County Supervisors and Maricopa County Stephen Richer many times, pointing out problems with the elections and demanding evidence and documentation. She asked the county four times to turn over information related to the Arizona Senate’s independent ballot audit of the 2020 election, but all four letters were ignored. 

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Arizona Senate President May Investigate Katie Hobbs for Requiring Donors to Contribute $250k to Dark Money Group

Rachel Alexander

Arizona’s new Democratic Governor Katie Hobbs is facing criticism for secrecy surrounding the amounts of money that donors contributed to her inauguration events, which previous governors have disclosed in the past. It’s also been revealed that Hobbs asked the donors to contribute a quarter of a million dollars, with no explanation where the money is going. Arizona Senate President Pro Tempore T.J. Shope (R-Coolidge) said he may conduct an investigation.

“I would think it might be something we would look into,” Shope told AZ Family. “We should have the right to know as a citizen what kind of contributions they’re getting.” State Senator John Kavanaugh (R-Fountain Hills) said he agreed. 

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Legendary Arizona Senate President Russell Pearce, Sponsor of SB 1070, Dies at 75

Rachel Alexander

Longtime Arizona Legislator Russell Pearce of Mesa, who served as Senate President in 2011, passed away Thursday at age 75. The sponsor of Arizona’s nationally known SB 1070 curbing illegal immigration, which Governor Jan Brewer famously signed into law in 2010, died peacefully at a hospital surrounded by family and friends after becoming sick earlier in the week. 

Pearce was loved on both sides of the aisle, famous for his friendship with Senator Kyrsten Sinema (D-AZ) going back to when she was in the state legislature and considered the most liberal member — the Arizona Federation of Taxpayers awarded her the Vladimir I. Lenin Award. According to one source, Sinema moved her desk at the legislature to sit next to Pearce. 

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Abe Hamadeh and RNC File Motion for New Trial Based on Additional Evidence of Voter Disenfranchisement

Rachel Alexander

Republican Arizona Attorney General candidate Republican Abe Hamadeh is not giving up contesting the election which went to Democrat Kris Mayes by just 280 votes. His first lawsuit contesting the election results was dismissed as premature, his second was thrown out by Mohave County Superior Court Judge Lee Jantzen for not showing there were enough problematic votes to change the election, but on Tuesday Hamadeh and the RNC, along with two individuals, filed a motion for a new trial, based on additional evidence of voter disenfranchisement. Hundreds of uncounted ballots were recently found in Pinal County. 

Hamadeh said on the Charlie Kirk Show, “We didn’t have these facts. But you know who had these facts? It was Secretary of State @katiehobbs. She had all these facts and she withheld them from the court, she withheld them from me. We weren’t able to present any of this evidence.”

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Undisclosed Amounts from Special Interests Sponsor Katie Hobbs’ Inauguration Event

Rachel Alexander

Democrat Katie Hobbs was sworn in as Arizona’s governor on Monday, in the first of two inaugural events this week. A third related event is raising eyebrows, a ball which is funded by special interests, including lobbyists, companies that do business with the state, developers, and builders. Hobbs refuses to disclose how much they are contributing.

Michele Swinick of the Save my Freedom Movement told The Arizona Sun Times she believes it is inappropriate for Hobbs not to disclose the amounts contributed by special interests. “The public has a right to know who is putting the most money into bribing their taxpayer-funded government,” she said. “This is a continuing pattern Hobbs has so it’s not a surprise that she would start out her very first fraudulent day of office with this move protecting her friends. She hid herself from the Arizona Voters during her campaign and now she’s showing you, yet again, how she operates. At least you can give her credit for one thing, she’s been consistent.”

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Arizona Supreme Court May Accept Kari Lake’s Appeal, Bypassing Appeals Court

Rachel Alexander

After Maricopa County Superior Court Judge Peter Thompson dismissed Kari Lake’s lawsuit challenging her loss in the anomaly-plagued Maricopa County midterm election, Lake filed a notice of appeal. She also requested that the Arizona Supreme Court immediately take her case, bypassing the Arizona Court of Appeals for several reasons.

“We’re going to appeal this,” Lake told Steve Bannon’s War Room podcast Tuesday. “We think we have absolute merit with this lawsuit, and we’re going to appeal it and take it even higher.”

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In Similar Cases to Lake’s and Finchem’s Lawsuit over Electronic Voting Machine Readers, Judges Did Not Order Sanctions Against Attorneys

Rachel Alexander

The judge in Kari Lake’s election challenge lawsuit declined to award sanctions against her attorneys, although he did order her team to pay the costs of the government defendants. However, in a lawsuit Lake filed earlier this year with Mark Finchem contesting the use of electronic voting machine readers, U.S District Judge John Tuchi, who was appointed to the bench by President Barack Obama, sanctioned her attorneys. 

That lawsuit was filed in April and Tuchi dismissed it in August. Maricopa County asked for sanctions on the grounds that attorneys brought claims to court that were “demonstrably false,” citing “vague” allegations that machine counting can produce inaccurate results. Tuchi said the attorneys acted “recklessly” and in “bad faith.” He ordered Lake and Finchem’s lawyers to pay Maricopa County’s attorneys fees. He warned others considering similar lawsuits, “It is to penalize specific attorney conduct with the broader goal of deterring similarly baseless filings initiated by anyone, whether an attorney or not.”

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Supreme Court Agrees with Republican States Led by Arizona AG Brnovich, Keeps Title 42 Border Restrictions in Place

Rachel Alexander

The U.S. Supreme Court ruled Tuesday in favor of Arizona Attorney General Mark Brnovich’s lawsuit that keeps Title 42 restrictions in place until the justices hear a challenge in February. Brnovich led a coalition of 21 Republican states in trying to keep the Trump-era rule in place.

Title 42, named in reference to a 1944 public health law, is a policy implemented under the Trump administration in 2020 which allows immigration officials to turn illegal immigrants back at the border due to COVID-19. In the interests of public health, they are not allowed to apply for asylum. Multiple efforts have been made to halt it but have faced stiff opposition from proponents like Brnovich.  

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Close Political Races Like Abe Hamadeh’s Where the Outcome Partially or Completely Flip-Flopped

Rachel Alexander

The election challenge in the race for Arizona Attorney General is not over yet, and may go on longer than expected due to new ballots showing up favoring Republican Abe Hamadeh. After the recount, which was ordered automatically due to the close race, Democrat Kris Mayes’ lead dropped from 511 to 280 votes. Throughout U.S. history in extremely close races, ballots are closely scrutinized and often some are thrown out, or others that weren’t counted were added in, often flipping the race. 

Hamadeh tweeted on Thursday, “Katie Hobbs and SOS Office abused our courts and made a mockery of the justice system. They knew the results of the recount was going to show a LARGE discrepancy due to tabulation errors and fought against our election contest knowing this. They deceived the courts.”

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Over 70 Candidates Competing for Arizona Republican Party Offices

Rachel Alexander

Arizona Republican Party (AZGOP) Chair Kelli Ward is not running for a third term, and six candidates have announced they are running to replace her. At least 63 more candidates are running for other positions in the AZGOP, which will be decided in an election at the annual statutory meeting on January 28, 2023. The candidates for chair are Sheila Muehling, Jeff DeWit, Steve Daniels, Dan Farley, Vera Gebran, and Lori Ann Martinez.

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New Country Music Label Baste Records Launched for Anti-Woke Artists

Rachel Alexander

A new country music label is recruiting and promoting anti-woke artists, launched by the young founder of The Post-Millennial. Matthew Azrieli, who is also a singer, songwriter, and guitarist, started Baste Records to promote talented country singers who are struggling to survive in the mainstream music business due to their right-leaning political and cultural views. He’s brought on talent like Chris Wallin, also a singer and songwriter who has written music for some of the biggest country stars, including Toby Keith, Kenny Chesney, Garth Brooks, and Trace Adkins. 

Azrieli told The Arizona Sun Times that he started Baste Records because music is a passion. He wanted to “provide a healthy outlet for conservatives, instead of just complaining.” Baste Records intends to appeal to a certain niche, the center right, instead of attempting to have a broad appeal that risks alienating factions. He pointed out Netflix is an example of an entertainment company that is engaging in the latter, angering both conservatives and the transgender community, causing it to lose market share. He said, “Cultural and political identities are driving entertainment media.” 

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Legal Experts Weigh In on the Merits of Kari Lake’s Election Lawsuit

Rachel Alexander

As the second day of Kari Lake’s trial contesting Arizona’s gubernatorial election wrapped up Thursday, various election law attorneys provided their analysis on social media and videos. Some were optimistic that Maricopa County Superior Court Judge Peter Thompson would grant Lake relief, declaring her the winner or calling for a new election, but some were not as optimistic.

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Kari Lake, Dennis Prager, Josh Hawley, and More Headline TPUSA’s AmericaFest 2022 on Sunday

Rachel Alexander

Turning Point USA’s annual AmericaFest continued its second day in Phoenix on Sunday, featuring a long lineup of well-known conservatives. Some of the standouts Sunday included Arizona gubernatorial candidate Kari Lake, who is currently fighting the results of a botched election in Arizona which resulted in Democrat Katie Hobbs being named the winner, co-founder of PragerU and talk show host Dennis Prager, and Sen. Josh Hawley (R-MO). 

The theme of many of the speakers was to stay positive and avoid the negativity and self-centeredness of the left, see the good in the country, and the values and institutions like marriage and children which formed it. Lake’s speech focused on voter disenfranchisement that occurred in her race, declaring, “My pronouns are ‘I won’” and “election integrity is the single most important issue of our lifetime.” 

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Charlie Kirk, Laura Ingraham, and Tucker Carlson Rally Thousands at TPUSA’s AmericaFest 2022 in Phoenix

Rachel Alexander

Turning Point USA, an organization for young conservatives launched in 2017 in Phoenix, now rivals CPAC for attendance at its annual December AmericaFest. With over 10,800 purchasing tickets, AmericaFest 2022 launched Saturday evening featuring speeches by TPUSA founder Charlie Kirk, Fox News hosts Laura Ingraham and Tucker Carlson, then followed by country music concerts.

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‘America First’ v. ‘Arizona First’ Candidates Face Off for Maricopa County Republican Committee Board

Rachel Alexander

The Maricopa County Republican Committee (MCRC) is holding its biannual election for the board in January, and two slates of candidates have declared their candidacies for the five slots. One slate has labeled itself “America First,” while another is calling itself “Arizona First.”

The America First slate, which is also going by #TeamTruth and emphasizing election integrity, consists of Craig Berland for chair, Shelby Busch for 1st vice chair, Jeff Greenspan for 2nd vice chair, Diana Jones for secretary, and Lawrence Hudson for treasurer. The slate promises, “We promise to put the GOP clearly on the side of True Reform of Arizona Election Laws: mail-ins limited to true absentees, and precinct hand counts. Empower PCs to make the party grassroots, not top down.”

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Former Kansas Attorney General Phill Kline Warns About the Destruction of the Rule of Law if Kari Lake’s Election Lawsuit is Dismissed

Rachel Alexander

As Kari Lake’s lawsuit contesting the results of the gubernatorial election winds its way through the legal system, various legal experts are speaking out on the merits of the case. Former Kansas Attorney General Phill Kline, who is currently a professor at Liberty University and director of the election integrity legal organization Amistad Project, warned on Friday that if Lake’s lawsuit is dismissed, allowing Democrat Katie Hobbs to become governor, it will undermine the rule of law. 

Kline tweeted, “If Hobbs is successful in dismissing Lake’s suit it only proves 1) election officials can violate procedure and law without accountability 2) partisan private vendors can still be used to conduct core government functions 3) legislators & others have failed to learn from 2020 and 4) many of those who claimed to fix the 2020 problems are wrong!” 

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Protesters Block Construction of Border Wall with Shipping Containers as Biden Administration Sues Arizona

Rachel Alexander

Outgoing Gov. Doug Ducey ordered gaps in the wall on the U.S.-Mexico border patched using shipping containers earlier this year, but protesters are blocking workers from finishing the project. At the same time, the Biden administration hit Arizona with a lawsuit also attempting to stop the construction. 

Arizona Attorney General Mark Brnovich, who has taken on the Biden administration numerous times over its inaction on the border, vowed to defend the state in court, hinting that he would not be cowed into a settlement. “President Biden says there are more important things to talk about than the border, yet his DOJ is suing to immediately tear down our crowd control structure,” he tweeted. “Once again, we’ll see you in court.”

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