¶ Arizona Supervisors Push Reckless, Costly Election Schemes That Could Force Communities To Sacrifice Other Priorities
SUMMARY: In Arizona, county officials have continuously promoted election conspiracies and been involved in scandals that led to expensive court fights while they have pushed for costly, illegal ballot hand-count efforts. These unnecessary and unplanned expenses waste taxpayer money and put an undue burden on localities already strapped for cash.
- In Pinal County, Supervisor Kevin Cavanaugh alone cost the county $145,000 in legal defense costs. Meanwhile, the county could hire two experienced deputy sheriffs and cover their annual salaries for less than Cavanaugh’s legal fees.
- In Cochise County, the 2023 budget had a $755,000 decrease, then infrastructure and maintenance projects totaling at least $170,000 went unfunded for fiscal year 2024, while recent election-related lawsuits racked up $175,000 in costs for the county.
In Pinal County, board members have pushed for hand-counting ballots and supported a test run, while in Cochise, county officials support efforts to hand-count election results and have sought to develop new “secure” ballot paper. Meanwhile another Arizona county has shown how costly hand-counts will prove to be. Mohave County overcame a $4 million budget shortfall for 2024 but faces an $18 million deficit in 2025. The Board of Supervisors supported a test run of hand counting elections but later rejected the proposal when the cost estimate broke $1 million.
The pursuit of baseless election conspiracies in Arizona wastes public resources and irresponsibly stretches already tight county budgets.
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- Pinal County Supervisors' Unplanned Legal Costs Hit $145,000 in One Case, Equal to Salaries of Two Experienced Deputy Sheriffs
- Cochise County's FY 2024: $755K Budget Cut, $170K Unfunded Projects, Election Lawsuits Cost County $175K
- Arizona Officials Advocate for Costly, Possibly Illegal Hand-Counts in Cochise and Pinal Counties