'Part of the problem': AZ elections chief blasts MAGA’s 'voter intimidation' agenda

Between now and November, the Kamala Harris and Donald Trump campaigns expect to spend a lot of time in Arizona — a complex swing state that, according to polls, could go either way in the United States' 2024 presidential election..

Arizona is also where a closely-watched U.S. Senate race finds Democratic Rep. Ruben Gallego and far-right MAGA Republican Kari Lake are competing for the seat presently held by independent Sen. Kyrsten Sinema (a former Democrat).

MAGA activists, according to Arizona Republic reporter Mary Jo Pitzl, announced a plan to monitor ballot drop boxes in a letter to Arizona Attorney General Kris Mayes and Arizona Secretary of State Adrian Fontes. And they invited them to work with the Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC).

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But Mayes is warning them that "voter intimidation" will not be tolerated.

"The letter received a frosty reception from the state officials, both Democrats," Pitzl explains. "They said the letter was not sent in good faith, noting it's been conservatives such as CPAC that have fueled skepticism about the integrity of U.S. elections…. Mayes, in a statement, indicated she's open to working together as long as CPAC acknowledges 'the indisputable fact' that Arizona's elections have been conducted fairly. And she made it clear, as the state's top law enforcement official, that she won't tolerate the use of open-source information to try and identify voters — an option that CPAC Chairman Matt Schlapp wrote is under consideration as a way to identify people who monitors might suspect are ineligible to vote."

Mayes, according to Pitzl, was quite forceful in her response.

The Arizona attorney general — who has indicted Rudy Giuliani, Mark Meadows and other Trump allies on criminal charges in an election interference case — warned, "I want to be extremely clear that I will not stand for any voter intimidation, and that includes using 'open-source' information to identify individuals using a drop box to vote."

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Aaron Thacker, Fontes' communications director, was also quite forceful, saying, "To come out and pretend like you recognize the problem and that you want to help is so disingenuous when you're a part of the problem. They need to lead with a mea culpa, not pointing fingers."

Pitzl notes that Arizona also had voter intimidation concerns two years ago.

"In Arizona's 2022 fall election," Pitzl reports, "there were instances of armed monitors watching as voters dropped off their ballots. A federal judge, in response, ruled the monitors must observe the same 75-foot limit as exists at polling locations."

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Read the Arizona Republic's full report at this link (subscription required).