The Arizona Free Enterprise Club (AFEC) is urging the Arizona legislature to appeal a ruling from the Arizona District Court striking down portions of two laws requiring proof of citizenship from voters. AFEC lobbied for and assisted in the drafting of the contested laws; now, it says it plans to file briefs in support of the appeals it hopes the legislature will file. The state has over 19,000 federal-only voters who haven’t submitted proof of citizenship.
Federal judge Susan Bolton ruled last week against provisions within HB2492 and HB2243 requiring proof of birthplace for voter registrations, investigations by county recorders based on the belief a voter is a noncitizen, and the voter’s disclosure of residence in order to register for federal elections. AFEC President Scot Mussi said in a press release that while it was a relief Bolton didn’t overturn the laws in their entirety, the provisions she did strike down were consequential.
“Though Arizonans can take solace in the fact that an activist judge didn’t completely dismantle these reasonable and commonsense laws, we are extremely disappointed in her decision to strike down several lawful provisions that we expect will be upheld on appeal,” said Mussi. “Officials across all branches and jurisdictions of our government should be working to uphold the integrity of our laws and to ensure that the votes of American citizens are not canceled or compromised by even a single illegal vote.”
Although Bolton struck down core provisions of the laws, she disagreed with the claims of activist groups that the legislators passed them with racist intent. However, Bolton did write that AFEC’s language in lobbying materials distributed to legislators was potentially discriminatory against Latinos. Per court documents, AFEC referred to illegal immigrants as “illegals.”
“[AFEC] disseminated lobbying materials by email to Arizona legislators that described how the Voting Laws would prevent ‘illegals’ from voting in Arizona elections,” said Bolton. “[T]he use of ‘code words’ may demonstrate discriminatory intent, and the term ‘illegals’ can evince racial animus for members of the Latino community in Arizona.”
“Illegals” is slang for individuals of any race and any country who migrated into the U.S. illegally, meaning the term isn’t restricted in its scope to Latino illegal immigrants.
Mussi also stated in AFEC’s press release that Bolton’s assessment amounted to a false accusation of discrimination. He said Bolton’s implication of racism was “laughable” considering that the illegal immigrants causing the border crisis have hailed from nearly all countries across the globe.
“It is outrageous that Judge Bolton would use an official court opinion to falsely accuse concerned and law-abiding American citizens of having racist intent in our efforts to pass legislation to strengthen election integrity in this state,” said Mussi. “This accusation is especially laughable when we consider the state of the open border, where millions of men, women, and children from more than 160 countries of origin have illegally crossed into America – many of whom are taking up residence and receiving benefits on the backs of hardworking taxpayers. It shouldn’t take a grassroots advocacy organization to point out the constitutional responsibility of a federal court, yet sadly, this is the present state of our nation.”
Corinne Murdock is a reporter for AZ Free News. Follow her latest on Twitter, or email tips to corinne@azfreenews.com.
Republican attorney general candidate Abe Hamadeh may now file his appeal, after months of waiting for a superior court judge to sign his orders.
On Thursday morning, the district court informed AZ Free News that Superior Court Judge Lee Jantzen signed the orders in the case, Kentch v. Mayes (CV-2022-01468). The notification followed the Arizona Court of Appeals’ denial of Hamadeh’s appeal on Wednesday due to lack of timeliness. Vice Chief Judge Randall Howe issued the order.
“The notice of appeal is premature and a nullity because it was filed while the motion for attorney fees was pending and before a final judgment was entered,” stated Howe.
Hamadeh claimed on X that the government has withheld evidence and therefore a new trial is warranted.
“The government’s withholding of evidence in our December trial is unacceptable and warrants a new trial where we will offer evidence showing that Abe Hamadeh, not Kris Mayes received the most votes for the office of Attorney General,” stated Hamadeh.
“The government’s withholding of evidence in our December trial is unacceptable and warrants a new trial where we will offer evidence showing that Abe Hamadeh, not Kris Mayes received the most votes for the office of Attorney General”https://t.co/DwauL48B7Q
Earlier this month, Hamadeh petitioned the Arizona Supreme Court for special action. In an order dismissing Hamadeh’s petition, the Arizona Supreme Court directed Jantzen to sign his orders from July and last December. Chief Justice Robert Brutinel issued the order.
“[A]t this point there is no apparent impediment to entering a final judgment, and the trial court should enter a final appealable judgment forthwith,” stated Brutinel.
Brutinel also criticized Hamadeh’s counsel for misrepresenting their efforts made to obtain final judgment; Hamadeh’s counsel has contested that the misrepresentation was unintentional. For that reason, Brutinel wrote that Jantzen couldn’t be fully culpable for failing to exercise discretion in his duty to carry out his responsibilities, and Hamadeh’s team was to cover the attorney fees incurred by the respondents, Attorney General Kris Mayes and Secretary of State Adrian Fontes.
In closing, Brutinel advised the parties on both sides of the case to avoid engaging in emotional language and verbal attacks of the opposition. Brutinel suggested a review of the conduct book, “A Lawyer’s and Legal Paraprofessional’s Creed of Professionalism of the State Bar of Arizona,” specifically the section on treatment of opposing parties and counsel.
“[T]he Court is mindful of the difficulties presented in this extraordinarily close election,” said Brutinel. “Notwithstanding these difficulties, the Court advises both sides to focus on the important legal and factual issues presented here and refrain from disparaging their opponents.”
Yet, after the Arizona Supreme Court advisement, Fontes accused Hamadeh and his team of conducting a misinformation campaign and intending to deceive the public in an interview with The Arizona Republic.
“This decision is a rejection of a misinformation campaign designed to deceive the public and sow distrust in our election officials,” stated Fontes.
One of Jantzen’s unsigned orders was his mid-July ruling denying Hamadeh’s motion for a new trial. The other was his December order putting the ballot exhibits under seal, admitting several exhibits into evidence, and denying any recount of ballots.
Corinne Murdock is a reporter for AZ Free News. Follow her latest on Twitter, or email tips to corinne@azfreenews.com.
On Wednesday, GOP gubernatorial candidate Kari Lake filed an appeal of her election lawsuit’s dismissal and the order to pay $33,000 to opponent Katie Hobbs for legal fees.
Lake’s lawsuit named Hobbs both personally and as secretary of state; Maricopa County Recorder Stephen Richer; the entire Maricopa County Board of Supervisors (BOS); and Maricopa County Elections Director Scott Jarrett.
We have filed our appeal.
And we would VERY much like to talk about the issue of signature verification (or the complete and total lack thereof in Maricopa County) before the court.
In an interview with “War Room” founder and host Steve Bannon this past week, Lake claimed that the election was stolen from her by shadow figures bent on keeping cartels active, the border open, and inflation high. Lake said that Hobbs will merely be a “puppet” for these forces.
“The voters went to the ballot box in November because they’re fed up. The only way to stop me from stopping the cartels was to steal an election,” said Lake. “This state is going to go to hell in a handbasket if Katie Hobbs is allowed to take control.”
Lake further claimed that Hobbs was in on this alleged collusion
“Hobbs has absolutely no respect for the law. I can’t even believe she didn’t recuse herself from this botched election.” said Lake. “She didn’t even campaign, she didn’t debate, she hid from people, hid in her basement, had no policy, because she knew that she could rig the election and walk into office.”
Lake appealed to the Division 1 Court of Appeals. Lake has promised previously that she would take her case up to the Supreme Court if necessary.
The Maricopa County Superior Court dismissed Lake’s lawsuit on Christmas Eve. Maricopa County defendants and Hobbs filed for $696,000 collectively in sanctions on Monday. However, the court denied most of the sanctions on Tuesday, only awarding Hobbs’ team $33,000 in fees. Judge Peter Thompson clarified that Lake’s claims of election misconduct or fraud weren’t groundless or presented in bad faith, contrary to what Maricopa County argued in its sanctions request.
In response to the superior court’s dismissal, both Hobbs and BOS Chair Bill Gates issued press releases celebrating the win.
Hobbs campaign manager, Nicole Demont, issued a statement on her behalf. DeMont said that the judge affirmed what Arizona voters chose last month, not “the conspiracy-riddled, dark corners of the Internet” that voted for Lake. Hobbs earned over 1.28 million votes to Lake’s 1.27 million votes: a difference of 17,100 votes.
A statement from our campaign manager Nicole DeMont on today's lawsuit dismissal.
Governor-Elect Hobbs is ready to get to work improving Arizonans' everyday lives and moving our state forward. pic.twitter.com/rYLoaE6z5z
Lake doesn’t appear to have the backing of some of the GOP’s national leadership. Embattled RNC Chair Ronna McDaniel told Newsmax that Lake lost because she ran a poor campaign, and that Arizona GOP Chair Kelli Ward also facilitated the loss.
“You had one candidate saying, ‘If you’re a McCain voter, get the hell out of my rallies.’ And then the McCain voters said, ‘Yeah, I’m not going to vote for you,” said McDaniel.
Oh snap. RNC Chair Ronna McDaniel goes off on Kari Lake & Kelli Ward for losing this election. Kari Lake not a good candidate. Wow. https://t.co/SgJxFkcvoy
