GOP bill bans prosecutors from charging county officials who refuse to certify elections

Republican legislators in Arizona are advancing a piece of legislation that would effectively make it impossible to prosecute county supervisors who block the certification of election results, according to the Arizona Capitol Times.

"Legislation awaiting a full House vote would legally bar [Attorney General] Kris Mayes – and whoever succeeds her – to bring criminal or civil charges against any county supervisors who refuse to vote for the formal canvass based on a 'good faith belief' there are issues that 'materially affect the integrity or accuracy of the election results,'" said the report.

This is already a broad exemption — but, according to the report, it goes even deeper.

Additionally, HB 440 "would allow supervisors to avoid legal liability for balking at certification if they have any 'documentation or other evidence' that suggests 'potential irregularities or errors in the election process,'" including "not just official reports but also sworn affidavits and 'expert testimony'" — without putting any limits on who can submit those sworn affidavits.

Thus, in theory, any random person could submit sworn testimony that they saw a problem with the election process, and that would give legal immunity to any county official who refuses to certify the election results, and by extension throw the state's results into limbo.

ALSO READ: 'Driven to self-loathing': Inside the extremist website believed to 'groom' teen attackers

A spokesperson for Mayes, a Democrat, warned that “If Republicans in the Legislature cared about real election integrity and reform, they wouldn’t have advanced a bill that weakens accountability and invites chaos.”

The bill is all but certain to be blocked by Democratic Gov. Katie Hobbs if it clears the House and also passes the state Senate.

Nevertheless, HB 440 is the latest salvo from years of the Arizona GOP — which managed to secure a win for President Donald Trump last year — promoting conspiracy theories about election results. Following 2020, the GOP-led state Senate bankrolled a controversial private "audit" by a Florida security firm that went on to be fined for concealing public documents and close down. The party has also repeatedly and unsuccessfully run former Phoenix news anchor Kari Lake for statewide office, who has filed an avalanche of frivolous litigation to get her election losses overturned.