Maricopa County Recorder Stephen Richer worked with the federal government to moderate speech, suggesting in one meeting that they hold “bootcamps” for media outlets to improve election reporting. Richer clarified to AZ Free News that he doesn’t advise or direct the actions of the federal government.
According to documents obtained by Trump’s 2024 campaign attorney Christina Bobb, Richer met with the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) Cybersecurity Advisory Committee (CSAC) Misinformation & Disinformation (MDM) Subcommittee in March. CISA is an agency of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS).
Well look at what we found!! Turns out @CISAgov has been collaborating with Maricopa County @stephen_richer to censor election information and keeping it from the public. Notice it’s marked FOUO. Richer also started a Super PAC to take down “election deniers”……. pic.twitter.com/xdrIJWJBHU
Richer cited The Gateway Pundit (TGP) reporting on a debunked claim that county election officials held an unannounced meeting as one example of misinformation.
TGP sued Maricopa County last month, TGP Communications v. Sellers, for denying one of its reporters a press pass. On Monday, the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals ordered the county to issue the press pass while litigation continues. The court asserted that the county likely violated the First Amendment, finding that the county discriminated against TGP for its reporter’s political views.
This reporter asked Maricopa County for comment on the order to issue a press pass. The county responded that it doesn’t comment on ongoing litigation.
AZ Free News asked Richer about this collaboration with CISA, as well as his decision to delete the below tweet amid the ongoing lawsuit. Richer responded that his remarks to CISA weren’t unique from remarks that he’s shared with many other audiences. He added that the documents posted on Twitter summarized the topics he discussed.
“I don’t advise them on anything or direct any of their actions. I think they just wanted the perspective of an election administrator and what I try to do to share accurate voting information,” stated Richer.
As for the tweet, Richer explained that he occasionally deletes posts that he dislikes or believes to be unproductive in hindsight. He added that he doesn’t keep track of the posts he deletes or the reasons why he deleted them.
Richer told the MDM Subcommittee that the federal government and CISA had low credibility in rumor control. He advised that those with the most credibility were local community members, mainstream media, and social media companies like Twitter and Facebook.
Along with the misinformation and disinformation claims, Richer told CISA that some were guilty of “malinformation” by submitting too many public records requests. In its meeting summary, CISA characterized the increase in requests as an “abuse.”
“In 2019, Maricopa County received 30-40 public records requests. In 2021, they received over 350 requests ranging from requests to produce everything related to the 2020 election to all email communications related to elections, to all the rules and processes on how the elections are administered,” stated the report. “This example highlights how individuals can use lawful means to burden a system already stretched thin.”
Those leading the MDM Subcommittee meeting were Megan Tsuyi, designated federal officer for CSAC and MDM Subcommittee; Kate Starbird, a University of Washington professor and MDM Subcommittee chair; and Kim Wyman, CISA senior election security lead.
Others present at the meeting were Vijaya Gadde, the legal, public policy, and trust and safety lead for Twitter; and Suzanne Spalding, senior DHS advisor and director of Defending Democratic Institutions Center for Strategic and International Studies.
Corinne Murdock is a reporter for AZ Free News. Follow her latest on Twitter, or email tips to corinne@azfreenews.com.
Maricopa County dropped the ball. They botched the election, and there is simply no way for politicians to gaslight their way out of it. After years of fearmongering from the media and the left that election integrity measures would suppress and disenfranchise voters, it turns out no one suppresses and disenfranchises voters quite like politicians and bureaucrats in Maricopa County.
Rather than taking accountability for their failures, they have rubbed their incompetence in the faces of frustrated voters, smugly downplaying their failure and patting themselves on the back, asserting that they made a “remarkable effort.”
All eyes were on this election. Everyone knew it would be contentious, that key races would be close, and that record levels of Republican voters would show up to vote in-person on election day. Given this, one would think election officials would go above and beyond to ensure every minute detail was ironed out so that the election process was beyond reproach.
Instead, within minutes of polls opening at 6 am, reports were coming in that tabulators were not accepting ballots…
Over the weekend, the Arizona Attorney General’s Office advised Maricopa County that it may have violated election law.
According to the attorney general’s office, their Elections Integrity Unit (EIU) received hundreds of substantive complaints concerning Maricopa County’s handling of the election. Assistant Attorney General Jennifer Wright asked the Maricopa County Attorney’s Office to explain the faulty printer settings, issuance of unlawful information regarding voting “check-out” procedures, and the unlawful mixing of “Door 3” non-tabulated with tabulated ballots by next Monday. At least 17,000 voters across 60 voting locations were impacted by Election Day tabulation issues.
“Arizonans deserve a full report and accounting of the myriad problems that occurred in relation to Maricopa County’s administration of the 2022 General Election,” stated Wright.
According to sworn complaints received by the EIU, printer settings were fine during testing the day before Election Day. Wright asked the county to provide the attorney general’s office with a comprehensive report detailing the voting locations that experienced printer or tabulation issues, the specific issues experienced by each voting location, all issues related to the printers and tabulators that contributed to voting location problems, a log of all changes to the printer settings that includes the identification of the individuals who made the changes, the county’s standards for printer settings, the exact time when the county discovered printer settings were the cause of the widespread vote center failures, and the methods used to remedy the printer settings at each voting location.
Maricopa County Board of Supervisors Chairman Bill Gates said that the long lines caused by the malfunctioning tabulators weren’t indicative of voter suppression. Rather, Gates said that the long lines were caused by voters’ resistance to dropping off their ballots in “Door 3” slots when the tabulators failed. Gates alluded that Republican Party leadership was to blame for voter aversion to casting a Door 3 ballot.
Gates: “When we had this issue on Election Day, we had a Plan B in place. A Plan B we always have in place.” In fact, it wasn’t too many years ago there were no tabulators at @maricopavote sites and all ballots were placed in a secure slot & tabulated at MCTEC. 2/2 pic.twitter.com/fOWgfXrOyK
As the attorney general’s office noted in their letter to the county, Door 3 non-tabulated ballots were unlawfully mixed with tabulated ballots at some voting locations. According to the EIU, at least one election observer witnessed more than 1,700 Door 3 non-tabulated ballots placed in black duffle bags intended to hold tabulated ballots only.
The attorney general’s office added that the law requires the county to reconcile ballots cast against check-ins at voting locations — not at central count. Wright asked the county to provide a statement clarifying whether reconciliation occurred at the voting locations or at central count.
Confusion over whether the county reconciled ballots at voting locations prior to central count likely occurred due to statements by officials. The county made no mention of the reconciliation process when advising voters what happens to Door 3 ballots.
In a later apology to voters, Maricopa County Recorder Stephen Richer said that Door 3 ballots were retrieved by election workers at the end of the day and brought to central count. Again, Richer issued this statement without any mention of reconciliation.
— Stephen Richer—Maricopa Cnty Recorder (prsnl acct) (@stephen_richer) November 8, 2022
Additionally, the attorney general’s office contradicted the county’s assertion that voters could cast a valid ballot after checking into another voting location.
The attorney general’s office asserted that poll workers weren’t trained on executing “check out” procedures — further contradicting county officials’ claims that this was a viable option for voters who desired to cast their ballot at another voting location after checking in to one. EIU reports reflected that voters were required to cast a provisional ballot at the secondary location since “check out” procedures weren’t possible.
The attorney general’s office contended that state law prohibits provisional ballots from being counted when a voter checks in at multiple pollbooks.
Voters who have already checked in, but want to cast a ballot at another site must first check out with a poll worker at the SiteBook to return the issued ballot. After checking out, the voter will be able to vote at any of our locations. Find them at https://t.co/8YEmXceI5Thttps://t.co/PwmguayIsu
— Maricopa County Elections Department (@MaricopaVote) November 8, 2022
The attorney general’s office asked the county to issue a report detailing when and how poll workers were trained in “check out” procedures, the legal basis for “check out” procedures, why the county continued to encourage voters to leave voting locations despite EIU notification that “check out” procedure training wasn’t proper, and all voters provided a provisional ballot due to multiple pollbook check-ins.
The county announced on Sunday that its tabulation efforts are nearly complete. Following this, all 15 counties will complete a canvass of the votes.
“Where there’s crisis, there’s opportunity,” as the saying often attributed to Albert Einstein goes.
In the midst of a widespread Election Day disaster concerning tabulation machine malfunctions reportedly caused by printer settings, Maricopa County Recorder Stephen Richer capitalized on the crisis in his county as an opportunity to fundraise for his campaign.
In an email to voters publicized by the Arizona Daily Independent, Richer explained his office takes responsibility for voter registration and early voting. Those in charge of the tabulator failures would be the Maricopa County Board of Supervisors, he added, throwing in commendation of his own job performance. Richer included a contribution link and a disclosure that the email was paid for by his reelection campaign.
Anyone else wondering if all of these ballot reprints is going to lead to a shortage in ballot paper? I know @stephen_richer said they "probably killed the forest" and all, but they also said that toner wouldn't be a issue and here we are. https://t.co/6i87ea0FC0
“Since becoming Recorder in 2021, I have worked hard to improve voter registration and Early Voting, while also supporting the Board’s administration of Election Day operations and tabulation, as well as bolstering communications about elections holistically,” Richer said in the email.
On Richer’s personal Twitter account, which he usually uses to discuss his work, this letter was published without disclosing its campaign origins or including the contribution request.
Voters faced with faulty vote centers were faced with multiple options, some leading to potential disenfranchisement: leave without voting, spoil their ballot, cast a provisional ballot, or wait in the hopes that their ballot would be tabulated properly (sometimes for hours).
If you’re at a polling place experiencing an issue with a tabulator, you have three options & your vote will be counted in each. 1) stay where you are and wait for tabulator to come online 2) drop your ballot in the secure slot (door 3) on tabulator 3) go to a nearby vote center
GOP consultant Constantin Querard told the ADI that this was a bad move on Richer’s part.
“I can’t imagine a worse time for a County Recorder to be soliciting contributions than on Election Day, while your voters are stuck in line, waiting for your malfunctioning machines to be repaired so they can vote,” said Querard.
Richer’s term doesn’t end until 2025.
Sorry. Friday, Nov 4
— Stephen Richer—Maricopa Cnty Recorder (prsnl acct) (@stephen_richer) November 9, 2022
Corinne Murdock is a reporter for AZ Free News. Follow her latest on Twitter, or email tips to corinne@azfreenews.com.
Maricopa County’s vote tabulators were intermittently malfunctioning on Election Day, prompting voter concern that ballots won’t be counted properly or at all.
The problem lasted well into the afternoon, around 8 hours, until the county said it believed it had found the cause of these mass failure: faulty printer settings. The county said it did test-run the machines ahead of the election. They assured voters that they would send technicians to the vote centers to fix the printer settings.
BREAKING: Maricopa County says that they have “identified the solution” for tabulator issues.
“County technicians have changed the printer settings, which seems to have resolved this issue.” pic.twitter.com/QvA3UCrEqQ
As of noon on Election Day, Maricopa County Board of Supervisors Chairman Bill Gates reported to KTAR that 60 vote centers were hit with tabulator and printer problems out of the 223 centers across the county. Each vote center has two tabulators.
Moments ago: @GaydosAndChad spoke to Maricopa County Board of Supervisors Chairman Bill Gates and @GaydosKTAR had a back and forth with him about some of the tabulation machines not working properly. pic.twitter.com/WcYXn3cpQj
The elections department advised voters to cast their ballots into a slot on the machine below the tabulator, where it would be stored until it could be counted manually at a later time.
— Maricopa County Elections Department (@MaricopaVote) November 8, 2022
We collected some testimonies of voters who say they experienced these malfunctioning tabulators. This is not an all-inclusive list, and results are quickly changing:
Anthem:
7:30 am – long lines caused by tabulators malfunctioning.
7:30 am – Cave Creek Town Hall tabulators were reportedly rejecting ballots.
8:30 am – Black Mountain Baptist Church and Cave Creek Town Hall locations were turning away voters.
9 am – Laestadian Lutheran Church reported that they had no equipment issues.
9:30 am – Poll workers informed voters that the tabulator issue had to do with how ballots are printed, and that only 1 in 5 ballots were accepted earlier in the day.
Gilbert:
8 am – Valor Christian Center voter said one machine wouldn’t accept ballots.
9:30 am – Trilogy Power Ranchexperienced no problems.
Goodyear:
8 am – Compass Church voter reported that her location had printing issues, prompting her to leave without her ballot scanned.
Mesa:
9 am – Love of Christ Lutheran Church voter and Turning Point Action activist reported that only 1 in 15 ballots were read by the tabulators. One woman reportedly waited two hours until her ballot was read properly, while the husband had to spoil his ballot after seven failed attempts.
10:15 am – Mesa Court House reported no issues, per our sources.
Peoria
2 pm – Journey Church voters reported their machines down.
2 pm – Arrowhead Country Club voters reported their machines down.
Phoenix
6 am – Burton Barr Librarybecame a ballot drop off site due to tabulation machine issues. An hour later, their check-in stations became operational.
Scottsdale
9:30 am – Unspecified location, voter had to run ballot through tabulator five times before it was read.
10:40 am – North Scottsdale United Methodist Church machines down, some left without votes counted while there.
Surprise
8 am – Asante Library voter reported their machines rejecting 90 percent of ballots.
Maricopa County Recorder Stephen Richer reported at 7:30 am Tuesday morning that over 23,000 people voted in person.
Voters casting ballots at polling places experiencing tabulator issues have three options: stay to wait out the tabulators, drop their ballot in the tabulator slot for manual processing, or go to a nearby vote center.
If you’re at a polling place experiencing an issue with a tabulator, you have three options & your vote will be counted in each. 1) stay where you are and wait for tabulator to come online 2) drop your ballot in the secure slot (door 3) on tabulator 3) go to a nearby vote center
Secretary of State and Democratic gubernatorial candidate Katie Hobbs reassured voters that ballots deposited in drop boxes would be tabulated manually.
Maricopa Voters: Any ballots deposited in the secure ballot box will be tabulated at central count under the observation of political parties. All eligible ballots will be tabulated. Find a vote center near you at https://t.co/hMClh8UaNW! https://t.co/nPInqxmi35pic.twitter.com/6miQqyfdnU
— Stephen Richer—Maricopa Cnty Recorder (prsnl acct) (@stephen_richer) November 8, 2022
Ahead of Election Day, the Department of Justice (DOJ) deployed its Civil Rights Division forces to monitor polling places in Maricopa, Navajo, Pima, Pinal, and Yavapai counties on Tuesday to ensure no voting rights were violated.
Arizona wasn’t the only state to experience issues with voting machines. Voters in Texas, such as Bell County, reported that the machines wouldn’t allow people to vote at all.
