AZ Senate Vote Fails, Won't Hold County In Contempt For Election

PHOENIX, AZ — Arizona Senate Republicans will not hold the Maricopa County Board of Supervisors in contempt for refusing to turn over election materials for an audit after one GOP lawmaker bucked his party.

The resolution to hold the county in contempt failed 15 to 15 after Republican Sen. Paul Boyer joined Democrats in voting no. Boyer said he didn't feel like the resolution was the right way for the two governing bodies to resolve their issues.

“I’ve always said, so long as there’s hope for both sides to work with one another, I want to do all I can in my limited power to have us work amicably together,” Boyer said. “We still have time to work together on this.”

But his fellow Republicans, many of whom continue to question President Joe Biden's win in the state, were angered by Boyer's decision, including Sen. Warren Peterson, who heads up the Senate Judiciary Committee.

“The bottom line is we have made a request, issued a subpoena, and they have given us the finger,” Peterson said. “They refuse to comply with the subpoena. That’s why they’re in contempt. That’s why they deserve to be found in contempt.”

The Senate introduced the resolution on Wednesday after the board of supervisors refused to comply with lawmakers' subpoenas to turn over voting machines and ballots from the Nov. 3 election. The resolution would have authorized Senate President Karen Fann to take "all legal action" needed to enforce the subpoena, including potential arrests for all five board members.

Four out of five members of the Maricopa County Board of Supervisors are Republicans. The board has already turned over a massive amount of election data to the senate.

Maricopa County courts rejected eight lawsuits filed by backers of former President Donald Trump after his loss in Arizona, finding no evidence of fraud in the state. Regardless, the senate has demanded access to voting machines and all 2.1 million ballots cast in Maricopa County during the election to ensure nothing irregular took place. The board has said it won't comply because ballots are sealed by law and the voting machines need to remain secure.

"The access to voter ballots and tabulation machines are non-negotiable," Steve Gallardo, the board's lone Democratic member, tweeted on Monday.

On Monday, the board filed for a restraining order and injunction barring the Senate from voting to hold it in contempt while a court considers a request it filed on Friday to quash the subpoena. That court filing says the effort by the Senate is a sham. The board is also conducting an audit of its own, which continued Monday as the vote took place.

Fann said despite the politicization of the fight between the board and the Senate, her position in the Legislature is helping fulfill its proper oversight role.

“This is not personal, this is business,” Fann said. “And they are doing what they feel they need to do and we are doing what we feel we need to do.”

The Associated Press contributed to this reporting.