Judge Rules AZ Senate Can Access Maricopa County Ballots

PHOENIX — A legal battle between the Arizona Senate and the Maricopa County Board of Supervisors came to an end Friday when a judge ruled the Legislature could access the county's election ballots and equipment.

The board had previously refused to submit to subpoenas from the Senate, arguing that Maricopa County's 2.1 million ballots should be kept secret out of concerns for voter privacy. Lawyers for the senate argued that lawmakers had the right to uphold voter integrity following baseless allegations of fraud in the county's election, saying the subpoenas were legal.

Maricopa County Superior Court Judge Timothy Thomason sided with the Senate, calling the subpoenas "legal and enforceable."

“There is no question that the Senators have the power to issue legislative subpoenas,” Thomason wrote. “The Subpoenas comply with the statutory requirements for legislative subpoenas. The Senate also has broad constitutional power to oversee elections. The Arizona legislature clearly has the power to investigate and examine election reform matters. Production of the subpoenaed materials would not violate confidentiality laws.”

The majority Republican board recently announced the results of two independent audits, clearing all election equipment of allegations of vote switching and hacking, and confirming the machines accurately counted the ballots. A hand-count of the ballots and multiple logic and accuracy tests were also performed following Nov. 3 and the results were sound.

The Senate would like to conduct an audit of its own to prove, once and for all, that President Joe Biden's win in the state was legitimate. Eight lawsuits alleging fraud in Maricopa County's elections have been tossed out by judges. To date, no evidence of fraud has been found in the state.

When reached by the Associated Press Friday morning, Senate President Karen Fann said she had not yet spoken with Senate lawyers other than to be told she had won.

“We are thrilled and grateful that the judge was able to see the big picture in this whole issue,” she said. “That this has never been about overturning an election. This has always been 100% about voter integrity and finding the answers to all of our voters’ questions about the safety and security and validity of the Arizona electoral system.”

Fann said the Senate will move forward with a full forensic audit in addition to verifying the audit completed by the board. The Senate will also dive into mail-in voting in the state, something Arizona has been offering for over 20 years. It is currently unclear who will conduct the audit.

“This will certainly give us the opportunity to get a more independent forensic auditor in there to verify that work,” she said. “And then do the rest of the audit, which actually verifies the ballots and more sampling of the signatures.”

In a statement, the Arizona Senate Republicans lauded the decision and emphasized that they do not wish to overturn the election with their audit.

"It's clear the judge understands this is about getting the answers to questions voters have, and not some effort to overturn any election results," the GOP group said. "Hopefully, with a proper, independent and detailed audit, we will start to restore voter confidence in election integrity."

Republican Board Chair Jack Sellers said the board respects the judge's ruling and will be meeting with attorneys to determine a way forward.

“Judge Thomason’s ruling brings much-needed clarity to whether Senate subpoenas apply to ballots that, per state law, must be kept private following an election,” Sellers said in a statement. “We respect his ruling and will review it with our attorneys as we determine how best to move forward.”

The Associated Press contributed to this reporting.