PHOENIX, AZ – After previously refusing to say if she would concede the election if she lost, Kari Lake – who failed in her recent bid in the Arizona gubernatorial race against Democratic rival Katie Hobbs – is refusing to acknowledge her defeat, instead accusing state election officials of being “corrupt” and filing a lawsuit challenging the election results.
Hobbs, who has served as Secretary of State of Arizona since January 2019, won a tight race against Lake with 50.3 percent of the vote, as opposed to the GOP challenger’s 49.7 percent.
Lake – endorsed by former President Donald Trump – has filed a public records lawsuit demanding Maricopa County hand over numerous records related to the election, citing malfunctioning voting machines resulting in long lines and other issues while voting in Arizona’s most populous county.
In the suit filed Wednesday, Lake’s attorney, Tim LaSota, said that his client is seeking a list of individuals who had problems casting a ballot, as well as information about counted and uncounted ballots that were accidentally mixed. Maricopa County officials have acknowledged that this problem happened at several polling places, but noted that this is a regular occurrence and is easily corrected.
The GOP challenger has also complained about issues in Maricopa County that stemmed from printers putting out ballots that were printed too lightly to be read by on-site tabulators, requiring hand-counting instead; Lake maintains that some of her supporters may have been “disenfranchised” as a result.
Lake has also accused some Arizona election officials of conflicts of interest, including Hobbes herself for remaining in her Secretary of State role while campaigning for Governor; Maricopa County Supervisor Steve Gallardo first serving as co-chair of the “Latinos for Katie Hobbs,” and then as a member of Hobbs’ transition team; and Maricopa County Recorder Stephen Richer association with Pro-Democracy Republicans PAC, which allegedly targets far right-wing candidates.
Despite any concrete evidence of wrongdoing in Arizona’s election currently being available, Republican officials in one rural county in the state – Cochise County – are refusing to certify their results, leading to Hobbes to file a lawsuit of her own. Despite this development, outgoing GOP Arizona Governor Doug Ducey has publically acknowledged Hobbs’ victory, and has vowed to work to ensure a smooth transition to her administration.
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