Pro-Trump Colorado elections clerk pleads not guilty to breaching elections system

On Wednesday, Axios reported that Mesa County, Colorado elections clerk Tina Peters — a far-right figure accused of illegally breaching Colorado elections equipment to try to prove former President Donald Trump's conspiracy theories about the election being stolen — has pleaded not guilty to the charges against her.

"The prominent Trump-supporting election denier is accused of violating security protocols and allowing an unauthorized breach of her county's election system. Sensitive information from the machines was later shared online," reported Shawna Chen. "She faces 10 criminal charges, including conspiracy, criminal impersonation, identity theft and official misconduct."

"The Mesa County clerk has maintained her innocence and claimed she was merely trying to investigate concerns about the voting machines manufactured by Dominion, which became the target of election fraud conspiracy theories after the 2020 election," said the report. "Her own department has countered her claims and said election results were securely archived. What's next: She is set to stand trial on March 6, per CPR News."

The run-up to Peters' trial has been fraught with drama itself, including an incident where Peters illegally traveled out of state to Las Vegas to attend a conference. Her lawyer got her out of trouble by assuring the court she wasn't aware she was violating the terms of her bail.

"Peters, who has called the charges politically motivated, also faces several federal and state investigations regarding wire fraud and other campaign finance violations," noted the report. "She was recorded kicking and cursing at police officers when they arrested her for resisting a search warrant in February."

While all of this was going on, Peters also ran for Secretary of State of Colorado, although she lost the Republican primary. Peters refused to concede after that election loss, claiming the "numbers are flipped and the results are fraudulent."

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