By Staff Reporter |
As punishment for forging nomination petition signatures, former lawmaker Austin Smith received probation and a five-year ban on running for office.
Smith received his sentence on Tuesday, which also included a $5,000 fine with a 10 percent surcharge and two years of supervised probation.
The ex-lawmaker entered a plea deal admitting guilt in November to attempted fraudulent schemes, an undesignated offense, and practices and illegal signing of election petitions, a misdemeanor. Smith admitted to forging over 100 signatures.
Smith was a state representative for the 29th district from 2023 to 2025. He was also formerly senior director of Turning Point Action and former chairman of Arizona Young Republicans Federation. Smith stepped down from Turning Point Action and suspended his reelection bid in 2024 after the signature forging allegations against him emerged.
It was one of Smith’s constituents, a Democratic voter named James Ashurst, who filed the complaint in the Maricopa County Superior Court in 2024 against the former lawmaker alleging signature forging. Ashurst’s complaint claimed that over a dozen petition sheets bore the same handwriting from purportedly different voters.
The complaint also included declarations from individuals listed on Smith’s petition sheets swearing they never signed the ex-lawmaker’s petition.
Initially, Smith denied wrongdoing in lengthy public statements posted to since-deleted or privatized social media accounts. Smith characterized the allegations against him as “coordinated” inventions of “two Democratic activists” involved in the political groups within his district.
“It seemed ludicrous because Republicans trying to get on the ballot don’t seek Democrat signatures and would have no reason to forge Democrat signatures, since they don’t count,” said Smith at the time.
The complaint didn’t move forward after Smith dropped out of the race. Tuesday’s outcome came out of prosecution from Democrat Attorney General Kris Mayes.
During Tuesday’s sentencing, Smith’s attorney, Kurt Altman, made an unsuccessful petition for Smith’s probation term to be reduced to one year. Altman said Smith was “mortified” by his decision to forge signatures.
“He’s embarrassed by the lapse in judgment and can be assured by this court he’s not gonna be back here, he’s not gonna have any issues with probation and he’s not gonna run for office again,” said Altman.
Altman also described Smith’s finances as incapable of handling a surcharge in addition to the fine, noting that the ex-lawmaker recently launched an agriculture business and had a child.
Tuesday’s sentencing reflected the outcome of a plea deal which dropped most of the charges against him, over a dozen including several felonies. Smith was indicted last summer.
Attorney General Mayes added in a press release announcing Smith’s sentencing that Smith admitted to attempting to deceive the secretary of state’s office.
“If you try to illegally manipulate Arizona’s elections or mislead Arizona voters, you will be held accountable under the law,” said Mayes. “There are real consequences for cheating the system.”
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