Maricopa County Will Vote On Audit Of Election Machines

PHOENIX — The Maricopa County Board of Supervisors is scheduled to vote Wednesday on an independent audit of the voting machines used in the Nov. 3 election.

Board Chairman Jack Sellers defended the accuracy of the Maricopa County's vote count, but said Tuesday the board wants to prove it once and for all.

“While I am confident in our staff and our equipment, not all our residents are,” Sellers said in a statement. “This is a problem.”

Sellers acknowledged that there would be some who will never be satisfied, but added that the board wanted to err on the side of transparency "to put facts at their proper place at the center of public discourse instead of the periphery."

Wednesday's board vote will determine whether the county will hire two independent firms to audit the vote tabulation hardware and software used on Nov. 3. Sellers pledged in his statement to maintain voter privacy throughout a potential audit.

Of the board's five members, four are Republicans.

The election has been the target of baseless allegations of fraud for months by Republicans who continue to question President Joe Biden's win in the state. Eight lawsuits challenging the results were tossed out by judges. To date, no evidence of fraud has been uncovered in Arizona. The state certified its 11 Electoral College votes for Biden on Nov. 30, with Republican Gov. Doug Ducey signing off on the security and validity of the state's elections.

The Republican-controlled state Senate is seeking an audit of its own after much back-and-forth with the board. The board previously said it would hand over election materials, including ballots, to the Legislature.

A spokesperson for Arizona Senate Republicans did not immediately respond to Patch's request for comment.

Arizona Secretary of State Katie Hobbs lauded the board's decision on Twitter and reiterated that Arizona's elections were safe, secure and fair.

"I applaud Maricopa County for their dedication to rebuilding the public’s trust and confidence in the 2020 General Election results, in the face of rampant misinformation and disinformation that has eroded it," she said.

The board agenda showed that an audit will analyze hacking vulnerability, verify that no malicious software was installed, test that the machines were not sending or receiving information over the internet and confirm that no vote switching occurred.

The board also wants to do a third “logic and accuracy” test to confirm the tabulation equipment operated correctly. Two previous logic and accuracy tests were conducted before and after the election as required by state law.

“It is my belief these audits will prove our machines were not vulnerable to hacking or vote switching,” Sellers said.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.