Arizona’s Democratic secretary of state called former President Donald Trump‘s planned visit to the state over the weekend a “dangerous” one.
Katie Hobbs said residents are “tired of being led by conspiracy theorists” and alluded to the Arizona Senate-led election audit in Maricopa County, which Trump is certain to talk about at the “Protect Our Elections Rally” in Phoenix on Saturday hosted by Turning Point Action, a political action committee created in 2019 by the right-wing Turning Point USA founder Charlie Kirk.
“The bottom line is it doesn’t matter what he says or does, nothing is going to change the outcome of the 2020 election. But it also doesn’t change how dangerous this is,” Hobbs told CNN on Friday.
Hobbs has been a staunch critic of the partisan audit, saying in May that some of its auditing procedures are “suited for chasing conspiracy theories” rather than a professional job. Her complaints have been echoed by the Republican-led Maricopa Board of Supervisors, which fought the GOP-dominated state Senate’s subpoenas for election materials until a judge determined they were “legal and enforceable.”
Maricopa County officials announced last month voting machines subpoenaed for the audit would be removed from service after Arizona’s Democratic secretary of state, Katie Hobbs, threatened to decertify the equipment, citing concerns with the methods of Cyber Ninjas, a Florida-based firm hired to lead the review.
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“[Residents] are tired of being led by conspiracy theorists and don’t support this fake audit, and they’re ready for leaders that are going to put those partisan games aside and deal with real issues,” said Hobbs, noting she is running for Arizona governor in 2022.
Hobbs said Friday the Senate-led audit has been “fraught with errors and problems,” claiming there is “no way they could come up with a legitimate outcome or result and at this point.”
The secretary of state also raised issues with the funding for the audit, noting much of the money raised for its efforts has been shrouded due to undisclosed donations. The Senate has funded as much as $150,000 for the audit, but the total amount remains unknown.
Hobbs has also called for an inquiry into possible election interference by Trump and his allies.
The firm Cyber Ninjas, hired by Senate President Karen Fann to lead the audit process, recently said more election materials are needed from the county before the team can present a complete report.
President Joe Biden won Arizona and its 11 electoral votes by more than 10,000 votes out of the 3.3 million across the state. His lead was due partly to his advantage in Maricopa County, where the Democrat scored nearly 45,000 more votes than former President Donald Trump among roughly 2.1 million ballots cast.
Fann has said the audit is not about overturning the election. Still, state Senate Majority Whip Sonny Borrelli floated the possibility of introducing a resolution to “reclaim electors” if the audit’s findings put Biden’s 2020 election victory in doubt.
Trump blasted insults at Republican state Sen. Paul Boyer on July 22 after the lawmaker said the audit “makes us look like idiots.”
In a statement, Trump said, in part: “All we demand is Voter Integrity!”
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The former president is scheduled to speak at the Saturday event hosted at the Arizona Federal Theatre.
