For a whole host of maladies, sunlight is the best disinfectant. In the months following the 2020 election, millions of Americans continue to harbor suspicion that many of the ad hoc changes to election law -- often without the input of the state legislature -- as part of dealing with the coronavirus pandemic negatively impacted the integrity of their state's election. For Arizonans, the 2020 election is one of the most contentious in recent memory. Much to the dismay of Democrats and their allies in the corporate media establishment, the Arizona legislature is taking the initiative to shine some sunlight into the 2020 election results in Maricopa County so that Arizonans can restore their confidence in the integrity of the state's elections.
Since December, the Arizona Senate has been in court arguing for the right to election materials (including ballots, voting machines, and election information) in order to conduct an audit of the 2020 election in the state's largest county: Maricopa County. Only recently did the court side with the legislature and require Maricopa County to comply with the request. If Maricopa County's 2020 election results were without fraud, as they have claimed repeatedly, then the county should have no issue whatsoever with the legislature performing a full audit of the ballots and machines. Which makes Maricopa County's behavior peculiar to say the least.
Arizona Senate President Karen Fann noted the Maricopa County Board of Supervisors has "refused to allow us to perform the audit at their facilities... and has gone so far as to refusing to even answer simple questions such as, 'How are the ballots sequestered?'" Fann reiterated the purpose of the audit is to "dispel our voters' concerns or, if a problem is uncovered, we must fix the problems before the next election." Something the Maricopa County Board of Supervisors, Arizona Democrats, and the establishment media ought to support as well.
Fortunately for Arizonans who support transparent and fair elections, Fann and the Arizona Senate prevailed in court, found a location to conduct the audit, hired independent firms to assist in the recount, and have been conducting the forensic audit of 2.1 million ballots in Maricopa County.
Yesterday on Washington Watch, FRC President Tony Perkins interviewed Alex Kolodin, attorney for a firm leading the audit, about the audit's scope. Those supportive of election integrity will be delighted to hear that Kolodin affirmed the audit will look at "every one of the major allegations made in litigation during the 2020 election cycle, and is actually checking to see was that allegation correct, was it not correct? And that's why we call it a full forensic audit, because it actually does address all of those items..." So if, as the Left claims, there is no evidence of fraud is indeed true then they should welcome with open arms such an investigation into the county's ballots and voting machines.
Kolodin noted the hand recount of the 2.1 million ballots in Maricopa County will take 20 days, so we will not know for sure what ailments, if any, plagued the county's election system for a few weeks. But one thing is for sure: voters concerned about the integrity of our election system will be watching closely for any news from the audit. Should the audit turn up no instances of fraud, great! Voters in Arizona can be confident their vote counts. If the audit discovers fraud, then the legislature and governor can work together to address the issue/s so that voters can be confident their voices matter in the state's election system.
Whether the forensic audit of the vote in Maricopa County turns up fraud or not, one thing remains constant: legislation such as HR1/S1 would do tremendous damage to the ability of states to ensure their elections are free from fraud. As the polling demonstrates, voters support efforts to improve election integrity, like requiring voters to provide identification to vote, and overwhelmingly share concerns about ballot harvesting, inaccurate voter files, remote ballot drop boxes, universal mail-in voting, and ensuring only U.S.-citizens can vote -- all popular reforms H.R.1/S.1 would make illegal under federal law.
The bottom-line is this: voters concerned about the integrity of future elections should support the Arizona audit of Maricopa County's election system. The worst thing that could happen would not be that the audit turns up no evidence of fraud, but rather that the audit doesn't complete its work. When a statewide election is decided by three-tenths of a percentage point, as Arizona was, Republicans and Democrats ought to agree: a dose of sunlight and transparency are the best remedies to ensure every Arizonan can have confidence in their elected government.
Concerned voters should pay no attention to media attacks, Leftist smears, and mischaracterizations of the audit and its supporters. Fairness and transparency in our election process are too important to surrender. The Arizona Senate was not kidding when they said they wanted transparency in the process, they even set up a livestream so anyone can monitor the audit from the comfort of their home. If you would like to watch the audit in real-time click here.
