Grand Canyon National Park to Get Electric, Natural Gas Busses

In the near future, visitors to Grand Canyon National Park could be transported around in a new electric bus.

The national park has been provided a $27 million grant to replace the current buses at the parks with ones that are “battery electric” and “compressed natural gas,” according to a press release from Arizona Sens. Kyrsten Sinema and Mark Kelly. The funding came from the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act’s Nationally Significant Federal Lands and Tribal Projects Program. The act from 2021, also dubbed the bipartisan infrastructure law, has a total price tag of $1.2 trillion.

Read More

Arizona U.S. Sen. Mark Kelly’s Support for Censoring Viewpoints on Social Media Is Taken Out of Context: Spox

During a Zoom call earlier this month with federal government finance officials, Senator Mark Kelly (D-AZ) called for censorship of unfavorable remarks on social media. He was referring to posts raising alarm about the financial stability of banks after the recent failures of Silicon Valley Bank and Signature Bank, which resulted in long lines of customers attempting to take their money out and the Biden administration stepping in to guarantee deposits of over $250,000, amounts the law doesn’t insure.

Read More

Mainstream Media Outlets Project Democrat Wins in Two Arizona Races as 390,000 Ballots Remain Uncounted

Maricopa County continues to drop nightly ballot dumps, with Friday’s results adding another 74,000 votes to the total, allegedly including ballots dropped off on Election Day. Despite predictions that tonight’s dump would swing in Republicans’ favor, Democrats cling to a lead across the significant races.

“They want you to be demoralized. There’s no reason to be. Our path to victory lies in the overwhelmingly red votes that Maricopa County either hasn’t counted or has deliberately chosen not to release. Hold the line,” said the campaign of Republican Gubernatorial nominee Kari Lake.

Read More

Ric Grenell Predicts Blake Masters Will Win as Latest 75,583 Ballots Come In from Maricopa and Pima Counties

Trump-endorsed Blake Masters pulled closer to Sen. Mark Kelly (D-AZ) after the results of counting more ballots were released shortly after 6 p.m. PST the day after the midterm election. Although Kelly took the lead initially on election night, his numbers have been shrinking as the types of ballots being counted last trended toward Republicans. 

Most of the new batch of ballots was early ballots that were dropped off between Friday and the Tuesday election. There were a much larger number of ballots dropped off on election day in Maricopa County than in the 2020 election, 275,000 versus 170,000.

Read More

Blake Masters Criticizes Mark Kelly as Border Encounters Appear to Rise in October

Arizona’s Republican Senate nominee, Blake Masters, spoke Sunday night against incumbent Mark Kelly (D) and the Biden Administration’s failed handling of the Southern border, saying they are not even trying to protect anything.

“Well, [Joe] Biden and Marky Kelly, they’re not even trying. Look at what they’re doing at the southern border. It would be bad enough if Mark Kelly and Joe Biden were trying but failing to secure our border, but guys, they’re not even trying. Day one, one of the first things Biden did, he signed away the border wall,” Masters said. “This dereliction of duty at the southern border, I think it’s just one of many reasons why Senator Kelly is going to be fired on Tuesday.”

Read More

Arizona Conservatives Respond to Prominent Republicans Endorsing Democrats, Say They’re ‘Inconsequential Has-Beens’

Some Republicans in Arizona have publicly endorsed Democrats in this election, sparking conservative Republicans in the state to respond dismissively. A long list of “RINOs” predictably endorsed Senator Mark Kelly (D-AZ), and now more have come out endorsing some of the other candidates running against the Trump-endorsed slate for higher offices.

State Representative Jake Hoffman (R-Queen Creek), who frequently receives the top rating from organizations as Arizona’s most conservative legislator, told The Arizona Sun Times, “Politics has always been an arena full of self-aggrandizing grifters. The cold reality, though, is that no one, especially not the conservative Republican electorate, cares what a tiny handful of inconsequential has-beens and establishment profiteers thinks.”

Read More

Libertarian Marc Victor Drops Out of Senate Race, Endorses Blake Masters

Arizona’s Libertarian nominee Marc Victor announced Tuesday his withdrawal from the race, endorsing Republican nominee Blake Masters on his way out the door. Masters said this endorsement.

“Marc Victor joins a growing list of Arizonans from across the political spectrum who are fed up with open borders, big government corruption, and rising crime,” Masters said. “We are building a broad coalition to defeat the worst Senator in America. This is another major boost in momentum as we consolidate our support against the extreme and radical policies of Mark Kelly and Joe Biden. Live and Let Live.”

Read More

New Poll Shows Races Tightening in Arizona, Blake Masters Says ‘Mark Kelly’s Campaign Is Floundering’

With the Arizona General Election only a week away, OH Predictive Insights (OHPI) released its final Arizona Public Opinion Pulse (AZPOP) poll showing nearly every race neck in neck. The race for Senate has become especially close, and Republican nominee Blake Masters said it is because Arizonans realize what’s at stake.

“Despite massive financial backing from the wealthy special interests who control him, Mark Kelly’s campaign is floundering because Arizonans know Mark Kelly is the one responsible for surging inflation, surging crime, and surging gas prices. They also know that Mark Kelly is the single Senator most responsible for our open border disaster. This election is a referendum on border security and Mark Kelly’s betrayal of every Arizona family,” Masters said in a statement emailed to the Arizona Sun Times. “A vote for Kelly is a vote for open borders. A vote for me is a vote for secure borders and safe communities. That’s what is at stake in this election.”

Read More

Libertarian Marc Victor Drops Out of Senate Race, Endorses Blake Masters

Arizona’s Libertarian nominee Marc Victor announced Tuesday his withdrawal from the race, endorsing Republican nominee Blake Masters on his way out the door. Masters said this endorsement.

“Marc Victor joins a growing list of Arizonans from across the political spectrum who are fed up with open borders, big government corruption, and rising crime,” Masters said. “We are building a broad coalition to defeat the worst Senator in America. This is another major boost in momentum as we consolidate our support against the extreme and radical policies of Mark Kelly and Joe Biden. Live and Let Live.”

Read More

Catholic Group Slams Dems’ Disgraceful’ Positions on Parental Rights in Massive Ad Buy

CatholicVote, a political advocacy group, is spending $2 million to highlight the positions of Catholic Democrats in key Congressional races with ads targeting regular church attendees, the group announced in a press release.

The “Can You Trust Them?” campaign addresses the views of Democratic Arizona Sen. Mark Kelly, Democratic Nevada Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto and Democratic Ohio Rep. Tim Ryan on parental rights, abortion and gender issues and will reach a projected one million regular mass attendees, according to CatholicVote. A series of video ads highlight Kelly, Cortez Masto ad Ryan’s support for child gender transitions and underage abortions without parental consent.

Read More

Undercover Video Reveals Arizona Sen. Mark Kelly Campaign Strategy to ‘Play Both Sides’ of Abortion Issue to Deceive Voters

A paid “Mark Kelly for Senate” staff member is heard revealing to an undercover Project Veritas Action (PVA) journalist Kelly’s campaign deception strategy to “play both sides” of the abortion issue by saying “Mark Kelly is pro-life” when, in reality, he is not, in order to win over ‘Independents’ and ‘Moderate Republicans’ in Arizona.

In the video released Tuesday, Evynn Bronson of the Mark Kelly for Senate campaign – a Mission for Arizona field organizer – is recorded explaining to the undercover PVA journalist how to win votes from Independents and “moderate Republicans” for the Democrat senator by deceiving Arizonans on the issue of abortion.

Read More

Arizona Republican U.S. Senate Candidate Blake Masters: ‘Absolutely Insane’ for CDC to Add COVID Shot to Childhood Immunization Schedule

It is “absolutely insane that the CDC is going to add the COVID vaccine to the childhood immunization schedule,” tweeted Arizona GOP U.S. Senate Candidate Blake Masters Wednesday. “This isn’t about ‘science’ or health.”

Read More

Blake Masters: A Red Wave Is Coming, No Matter What Polls Say

Arizona Republican Senate nominee Blake Masters sat down with Republican gubernatorial nominee Kari Lake Saturday to ask each other questions leading up to the election, which Masters said will see a massive red wave no matter what polls say.

“When Democrats get these poll calls, I think they might not want to admit, ‘Oh, we’re planning on voting for Kari, we’re planning on voting for Blake,” Masters said. “Normal people, when they look around, how are things going? Do we like the wide-open southern border and the invasion in our country, and the fentanyl? Do we like the double-digit crime spikes in our cities? Do we like 13 percent inflation? No, we don’t. We’re going to vote for a change, and that’s why I still think you can safely disregard these polls, whether they’re good for us [Republicans] or bad for us. We’re going to have a red wave.”

Read More

Blake Masters: Arizona Needs a Senator Who Will Fight to Secure Our Water Future

Arizona’s Republican Senate nominee Blake Masters spoke at one of Kari Lake’s “Ask Me Anything” Tour events Tuesday, touching on the state’s looming water crisis and how he believes he can fix it.

“Let’s get a U.S. Senator for Arizona who’s going to fight tooth and nail,” Masters said. “That’s something I want to do. Send someone with sharp elbows who’s going to fight for our water, right? That’s the political fix.”

Read More

Blake Masters Requests Mark Kelly Resign So Someone Can Actually Secure the Border

Arizona’s Republican Senate nominee Blake Masters asked incumbent Democrat Mark Kelly (D-AZ) Thursday to resign from his position so someone could fix the border. 

“We have a wide-open border. So, if that is the best you can do, I respectfully request you resign, and let’s get someone in the seat who will actually secure our border,” Masters said at the 2022 Arizona Senate Debate.

Read More

Blake Masters Receives Endorsement from Former Senate Candidate Opponent Jim Lamon

Arizona Republican Senate nominee Blake Masters has received an endorsement from a former opponent, Senate candidate, veteran, and businessman Jim Lamon.

“We need to elect a conservative Republican who will vote for American values, secure our border, lower inflation and combat crime – on November 8th, join me in voting for Blake Masters,” said Lamon. “I am supporting Blake because Joe Biden and Mark Kelly have been a disaster for America and our great state. We must stop their Marxist agenda and put America and Arizona first.”

Read More

New Ad Campaign Contrasts Mark Kelly’s Abortion Extremism with Blake Masters’ Pro-Life Views

The Women Speak Out PAC (WSOPAC), a partner of Susan B. Anthony Pro-Life America (SBA), announced today the launch of a $1 million ad exposing Sen. Mark Kelly’s pro-abortion ways in contrast with pro-life Senate nominee Blake Masters.

“Mark Kelly is an abortion radical who backs legislation forcing states to allow abortion on demand, until birth, paid for by taxpayers. This is deeply out of touch with Arizona voters, as well as most Americans,” said Mallory Carroll, national spokeswoman for Women Speak Out PAC.

Read More

Blake Masters Receives Endorsement from Arizona Police Association

The Arizona Police Association (APA), the umbrella agency representing the state’s law enforcement professionals, endorsed Blake Masters in his race for the Senate on Monday, saying he will bring relief to a state struggling with crime.

“On behalf of the Arizona Police Association, I am pleased to announce our endorsement of Blake Masters in Arizona,” said APA President Justin Harris. “Blake will always back our men and women in blue, he will defend our great Constitution, and he believes strongly in enforcing the rule of law.”

Read More

Blake Masters Campaign Celebrates Momentum in ‘Dead Heat’ Race Following New Poll Results

A new poll from the Trafalgar Group shows Trumped-endorsed Republican Senate nominee Blake Masters making momentum against his opponent, incumbent Mark Kelly (D-AZ).

“This race is a dead heat despite Mark Kelly spending $60 million to paint himself as some type of moderate, when he’s been nothing more than a rubber stamp for Joe Biden’s failed agenda. Blake Masters is gaining momentum every day as voters learn about Kelly’s extreme voting record and reject him,” said Blake Masters’s press contact Zachery Henry to the Arizona Sun Times.

Read More

Blake Masters Receives Endorsement from Arizona’s Four Republican Representatives

Arizona Republican Senate nominee Blake Masters has received endorsements from the state’s four Republican Representatives, and he said he looks forward to joining them in Washington.

“It’s an honor to be endorsed by bold, conservative leaders like Representatives Biggs, Lesko, Schweikert, and Gosar. All are highly respected and effective legislators, which is why Arizona voters continue to re-elect them to fight for their interests in Washington. I look forward to being their partner in the Senate,” Masters said.

Read More

Blake Masters: Mark Kelly Should Be Forced to Attend the Funerals of Teenagers Overdosing on Fentanyl

Arizona Republican Senate nominee Blake Masters recently blasted his incumbent opponent Mark Kelly (D-AZ) for supporting the Biden Administration’s open border policies that have led to a flood of fentanyl entering the country.

“There are no words to describe tens of thousands of dead American teenagers, dead from fentanyl because of the wide-open southern border,” Masters said. “Mark Kelly should be forced to attend the funerals of each of those dead children, so he can better understand the consequences of his support for Joe Biden’s open borders. I truly mean that.”

Read More

GOP Support Swells for Arizona Democratic Senator Mark Kelly

Sen. Mark Kelly (D-Ariz.) has lined up numerous endorsements from prominent Arizona Republicans, announcing nearly 50 Republicans and independents behind him in July and over 40 more this month. As a Democrat in a traditionally red state, he is trying to portray himself as a moderate in the race against Trump-endorsed Republican candidate Blake Masters. 

Arizona political consultant Jason Rose told The Arizona Sun Times the endorsements may be very effective, pointing out how well they worked for a previous well-known Arizona Democratic politician and citing the endorsement of Mesa Mayor John Giles. “Former Governor Janet Napolitano reinvented effective Republican receptivity for Democrats,” he said. “Mark Kelly is now following that model. His ads along these lines are designed not for everyone but the narrow slice of swing voters that have and will determine such elections. Having them anchored by the Republican Mayor of one of the largest Republican cities in America is impressive, and will be effective. After all, where is Blake Masters’ Democrat group for him?”

Read More

Kari Lake Celebrates Momentum as New Poll Shows Her in Lead over Opponent Hobbs

The Trafalgar Group recently unveiled new survey results involving the Arizona governor seat race, showing Trump-endorsed Kari Lake with a slight lead over her gubernatorial rival, Democrat Katie Hobbs.

“Katie Hobbs had every advantage heading into this race after she faced an easy primary. Instead, despite a tough GOP primary, Kari Lake has seized the lead before Labor Day,” said the Lake campaign in a press release. “Katie Hobbs is simply too much of a Biden-supporting liberal extremist for Arizona. Our campaign will only continue to build on this momentum as Republicans keep uniting around Kari Lake, and Arizonans learn more about her plans to put Arizona First, fix our economy and secure the border.”

Read More

Charlie Kirk Calls Arizona the ‘Battleground That Can Determine the Future of America’

Turning Point USA founder Charlie Kirk spoke at an Arizona rally Sunday, telling the people that this is the battleground state that can determine the future of America.

“You live in the state that is now the battleground, 50-50, hundreds of millions of Democrat dollars are coming into this state because as Arizona goes, America goes,” Kirk said. “You live in the place where everything you do matters. You live in the state, where if America is going to survive as a Constitutional Republic, separation of powers, independent judiciary, respect for the unborn, protection of our children. It’s all going to happen here.”

Read More

U.S. Senate Hopeful Blake Masters: Mark Kelly Should Go Back to Space

PHOENIX, Arizona – Arizona Senate Republican nominee Blake Masters spoke at the recent “Unite and Win” rally in Phoenix, hosted by Turning Point Action, telling Arizonans it is time to get Mark Kelly (D-AZ) out of office.

“You know what, hey, we can respect that he [Mark Kelly] used to be an astronaut,” Masters said. “I’m sure he was really great at it. Doing all the experiments in space or whatever it is that astronauts do nowadays. Let him do that. Because here on earth, he’s failing. Here on earth, we have some big problems. Here on earth, we have massive inflation. Here on earth, in Arizona, there’s an invasion at our southern border.”

Read More

Kari Lake, Blake Masters Up Double Digits in Their Races: Poll

The Arizona primary election is less than two weeks away, as large numbers of undecided voters contribute to wavering poll numbers. However, a new poll by Gateway Pundit/Cygnal on the U.S. Senate and gubernatorial GOP primary races shows the Trump-endorsed candidates, Kari Lake for governor and Blake Masters for U.S. Senate, leading by double digits.

Read More

Arizona Senate Race a Dead Heat, Poll Shows

The U.S. Senate race in Arizona this year is a tossup, an Arizona Public Opinion Pulse poll conducted by OH Predictive Insights shows.

Arizona voters have a split opinion of incumbent Democratic U.S. Sen. Mark Kelly; he has a 50% approval rating, including a 49% approval rating from self-described independents. Meanwhile, 39% disapprove of Kelly.

Read More

Blake Masters: Everyone Is Asking Me Why We Are Sending $40 Billion to Ukraine

Neil W. McCabe, the national political editor of The Star News Network, interviewed the former president of Thiel Capital and Arizona GOP Senate hopeful Blake Masters about what voters are telling him and why he is running to replace Democrat Sen. Mark Kelly.

Read More

U.S. Senate Hopeful Lamon: I Would Not Have Voted to Certify Arizona’s Electors Jan. 6, 2021

Neil W. McCabe, the national political editor of The Star News Network, interviewed Arizona GOP Senate hopeful Jim Lamon after his town hall with supporters in Sun City. Lamon told TSNN he would not have voted to certify Arizona’s electors Jan. 6, 2021.

Read More

‘Federal Government’s Failure’: Democrats Join Forces with Republicans to Reverse Biden’s Migrant Decision

Moderate Senate Democrats joined Senate Republicans on Thursday in an effort to block President Joe Biden from lifting Title 42, a measure enacted during the pandemic that allows for the quick expulsion of migrants.

The bipartisan group of lawmakers proposed legislation that would halt the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) from ending the policy, which the agency announced would cease on May 23, without an adequate plan in place.

Read More

Democrat Arizona Secretary of State and Gubernatorial Candidate Katie Hobbs Praises Biden for Removing Title 42 Restrictions at the Border

Katie Hobbs

While many leading Democrats, including both of Arizona’s U.S. Senators, Mark Kelly and Kyrsten Sinema, are upset with the Biden administration’s decision to end the Title 42 COVID-19 restrictions on U.S. borders, Arizona Secretary of State Katie Hobbs praised the decision. The Title 42 order, issued by the Centers for Disease Control in March 2020 under the Trump administration, has been used by Customs and Border Protection to prevent 1.7 million migrants from entering the country. They are either sent back to Mexico or on flights to other countries.

When asked by 3TV about the change and how it would affect border security, Hobbs said, “Title 42 should not be a substitute for that. As governor, I will work to, with the federal government, make sure that Arizonans are secure, they need to put more resources and securing the border. We need more resources to address the influx of migrants coming to the border.” 

Read More

Biden’s Labor Department Nominee Had His Nomination Blocked Thanks to Three Democrats

Three Democratic senators joined Republicans on Wednesday to kill the nomination of David Weil to head the Labor Department’s Wage and Hour Division, Politico reported.

In a final vote of 47-53, the Senate chose not to move forward with considering Weil’s nomination after intense criticism from Republicans over his tenure in the Obama administration, Politico reported. Arizona Sens. Kyrsten Sinema and Mark Kelly, along with West Virginia Sen. Joe Manchin, were the only Democrats to vote against Weil.

Read More

Senators Introduce Bipartisan Legislation to End U.S. Reliance on Chinese Minerals

Mark Kelly and Tom Cotton

A Republican and Democratic senator introduced legislation Friday that aims to end U.S. reliance on rare-earth metals sourced from and produced in China.

The Restoring Essential Energy and Security Holdings Onshore for Rare Earths (REEShore) Act would prevent supply disruptions and bolster domestic production of the minerals, according to Sens. Tom Cotton and Mark Kelly, the bill’s sponsors. They said the legislation is important for American national security and development of advanced technologies.

“The Chinese Communist Party has a chokehold on global rare-earth element supplies, which are used in everything from batteries to fighter jets,” Cotton said in a statement. “Ending America’s dependence on the CCP for extraction and processing of these elements is critical to winning the strategic competition against China and protecting our national security.”

Read More

Election Handicapper Says Three Major 2022 Senate Races Now a ‘Toss-up,’ a Boon to Republicans

Raphael Warnock

Hotly contested Senate seats in Georgia, Arizona and Nevada are now well within the realm of a “toss-up” in next year’s races, a notable political forecaster is predicting.

The Cook Political Report, a longtime newsletter that specializes in U.S. election predictions, this week moved those races to its toss-up column for the 2022 elections.

In Georgia, Democrat Sen. Raphael Warnock faces re-election after narrowly winning a special election this year. His victory helped tip the Senate in favor of Democrats.

Read More

Arizona State Treasurer Kimberly Yee Sends Letter to Sinema, Kelly Opposing Legislation to Allow IRS to Monitor Americans’ $600 or More Withdrawals and Deposits

Arizona State Treasurer Kimberly Yee sent a letter to Arizona’s Democratic Sens. Kyrsten Sinema and Mark Kelly urging them not to vote for legislation that would allow the IRS to monitor Americans’ bank accounts for transactions of $600 or more in withdrawals and deposits. The proposal is part of the Biden administration’s $3.5 trillion American Families Plan, the so-called “human infrastructure” bill. Scott Earl, the CEO & President of Mountain West Credit Union Association, also signed the letter, representing multiple credit unions. 

Yee, who is running for governor of Arizona, said, “As it stands now, this proposal would threaten the financial security of more than 100 million Americans from all demographics. If it passes, the government will conduct one of the largest data mining exercises in American history, risking the security of the banking system.”

Read More

Arizona Senators Kelly and Sinema Refuse to Address National Archives Labeling Founding Documents ‘Harmful Language’

  The National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) placed warning labels on the Constitution, Declaration of Independence, and other historical documents, warning viewers that “some of the materials presented here may reflect outdated, biased, offensive, and possibly violent views and opinions.” The Arizona Sun Times requested comment from Arizona’s Democratic…

Read More

Arizona School Officials Pushing Mask Mandate Caught Not Wearing Masks

Some Arizona school officials are in a feud with Governor Doug Ducey and the Arizona Legislature over implementing mandatory mask policies, but some of those officials have been caught not wearing masks themselves. Arizona Superintendent of Schools Kathy Hoffman, a Democrat, was spotted not wearing one along with others at a baby shower. Not a single person present had a mask on or was social distancing. Amphitheater Public Schools, which mandated masks on August 16, posted a photo of their Communications Director Michelle Valenzuela, posing without a mask on, clearly standing within a couple of feet of the photographer. They deleted the tweet.

Ducey is confident the school mask mandates will not hold up in court. He said earlier in August, “COVID has been with us for well over a year and a half now, and Arizonans are educated about it. If they want to wear masks, they should absolutely do so. It’s an individual choice. No one and no law anywhere in Arizona is stopping anyone from wearing masks. Ultimately, these mandates are toothless, unenforceable and will not hold up in court.”

Read More

All Seven of Arizona’s Democratic Members of Congress Push for Earmarks, Republicans Don’t

Now that a 10-year ban on Congressional earmarks has ended, all seven Democrats in Arizona’s congressional delegation are requesting them. None of the four Republican members are. Rep. Raul Grijalva (D-AZ-07) wants to beautify light poles and several of the members want to expand public transit. Many of them are getting their requests approved as part of the $2.1 trillion infrastructure bill, which is expected to pass into law soon.

Rep. David Schweikert (R-AZ-06) told The Arizona Sun Times Friday that the earmarks aren’t necessary, since they are for the types of projects local and state governments generally cover.

Read More

Arizona Legislator Wendy Rogers Launches Petition to Decertify Election Results Due to Ballot Audit

Arizona Sen. Wendy Rogers (R-Prescott) launched a petition recently demanding the decertification of the 2020 election results in Arizona, based on preliminary results from the ballot audit in Maricopa County ordered by the Arizona state senate. The audit is looking at both the presidential race and the U.S. senate race, where Democrat Mark Kelly defeated incumbent Republican Martha McSally by a small margin. According to a tweet Friday evening from Rogers, the petition was at 36,302 signatures despite server issues forcing the site offline periodically. She is aiming for one million signatures.

Read More

Arizona’s U.S. Senator Mark Kelly Proposes Legislation to Fund Local Mainstream Media

Sen. Mark Kelly (D-AZ) joined U.S. Sens. Maria Cantwell (D-WA) and Ron Wyden (D-OR) to co-sponsor legislation that indirectly funds local media. The Local Journalism Sustainability Act establishes tax credits that give consumers a huge deduction on media subscriptions, subsidizes journalists’ salaries, and funds news outlets by paying for businesses to advertise.

Read More

Maricopa County Official Known for ‘Sharpiegate’ Donated to Democrat Mark Kelly’s U.S. Senate Campaign

Kelly Dixon, assistant director for the Maricopa County Election Department’s recruitment and training division, who admitted she knew there were “issues and concerns” with voters marking ballots with Sharpies, donated to Senator Mark Kelly (D-AZ). She earmarked a $100 contribution to him through a donation she gave to the Democratic campaign fundraising organization ActBlue, Headline USA reported on Monday. 

Maricopa County voters complained about poll workers handing them Sharpies on election day that bled through the ballots. Dixon knew ahead of election day that using sharpies to mark a ballot was an issue. In an email dated October 22, she wrote “Starting tomorrow, 10/23, and through 11/2, we are asking the Clerks hand voters BALLPOINT PENS rather than markers.” However, she then said “We NEED to use markers on Election Day.” She did not explain why. Republicans voted on election day in huge numbers last year, driven by fears of voter fraud. A Gallup survey found that 62% of Democrats said they would vote early last fall, compared to only 28% of Republicans. 

Read More

Arizona Attorney General Brnovich Leads Challenge at SCOTUS Related to Hobbs

Mark Brnovich

Arizona Attorney General Mark Brnovich filed an amicus curiae brief Monday in the U.S. Supreme Court with 22 states signing on, demanding the court overrule a decision by the Sixth Circuit allowing state officials to surrender in lawsuits challenging state laws they don’t want to defend.  The move comes as Secretary of State Katie Hobbs, a Democrat, is refusing to appeal adverse decisions striking down Arizona’s elections laws.

The brief relates to Kentucky v. EMW Women’s Surgical Center, where Democratic Kentucky Governor Andy Beshear failed to appeal a court decision striking down a Kentucky law banning dismemberment abortions during the second trimester of pregnancy. Kentucky’s Republican Attorney General Daniel Cameron is trying to intervene in order to defend the law.

Read More

Status Update: The Maricopa County Ballot Audit

The ballot audit in Maricopa County is winding down, and as details leak out from the counting and analysis, it is becoming clear what many of the problems are that will need addressing. Some could be honest mistakes, such as voters marking their ballots incorrectly, but others could be far more serious.

Arizona Senate President Karen Fann (R-Prescott) listed off several discrepancies in a letter to the Maricopa County Supervisors on May 12, such as different numbers of ballots in the boxes than the numbers listed on the pink sheets inside the boxes. She cited several examples, including one box that contained an alarming 35 fewer ballots than the number on the pink slip.

Read More

Arizona Attorney General Launches Campaign for Senate

Arizona Attorney General Mark Brnovich announced on Thursday his intentions to run to represent the Grand Canyon State in the U.S. Senate.

In a video announcing his candidacy, Brnovich said, “We entrust our elected leaders to protect our freedom and they’ve failed us. Today, Arizonans lack confidence in the state of the world, the safety of their communities, their vote, their personal freedoms, and definitely in our representatives in Washington. What we have is a real vacuum of leadership.”

Read More