Judge dismisses 8 of 10 claims in Kari Lake’s election lawsuit
PHOENIX (3TV/CBS 5) — A judge has dismissed most, but not all, of the claims in an election-related lawsuit filed by former GOP gubernatorial candidate Kari Lake following a hearing Monday morning in Maricopa County Superior Court.
On Monday evening, Judge Peter A. Thompson dismissed eight out of 10 claims in Lake’s lawsuit. The only two claims that weren’t dismissed were counts two and four, which dealt with the machine tabulator issues and the ballot chain of custody. Lake claims in the lawsuit that the tabulators “intentionally” malfunctioned on Election Day. Lake alleged a Maricopa County employee interfered with the machines violating the law. She now has to prove that someone tampered with the machines and the printer malfunctions caused a loss of votes for her. She also claimed there was misconduct regarding the chain of custody regarding the ballots, putting the entire election in doubt. A hearing is set for Tuesday at 8 a.m. The eight claims thrown out include current Secretary of State and Governor-elect Katie Hobbs’ office having Twitter posts taken down, incorrect certification and more.
On Tuesday afternoon, Lake’s attorney’s confirmed they withdrew the subpoena asking Hobbs to testify. Lawyers say the remaining claims of the lawsuit relate to Maricopa County and not the Secretary of State’s Office. However, Lake previously said during a event that Hobbs “will have to take the stand.”
Lake filed the lawsuit earlier this month against Hobbs, the Maricopa County Board of Supervisors, Recorder Stephen Richer and Elections Director Scott Jarrett. The 70-page suit says evidence gathered from witnesses shows “hundreds of thousands of illegal ballots infected the election in Maricopa County” and that problems with equipment along with long lines disenfranchised Republican voters. The lawsuit calls for Lake to be declared the winner of the 2022 gubernatorial race, or at the very least, to vacate the results and hold a new election.
The Secretary of State’s Office responded to the initial filing of the lawsuit, calling it “baseless,” saying “Kari Lake needs attention like a fish needs water.” Last week, Hobbs and the others named in the lawsuit filed a motion to dismiss.
During the hearing, the attorney for Maricopa County said affidavits from voters show most voters did cast their ballot, but did have to wait in longer-than-normal lines. The attorney also stressed that there was no election misconduct, or facts to support it. On the other side, Lake’s attorney claims Maricopa County has not publicly said they intend to get to the bottom of Election Day problems.
Lake is not the only GOP candidate to file a lawsuit over their election loss in Arizona. Former secretary of state candidate Mark Finchem filed a lawsuit earlier this month to overturn the results of the election. Last Friday, a judge dismissed the lawsuit with prejudice, meaning it can’t be filed again. Abe Hamadeh, a GOP candidate who ran for Arizona Attorney General, also filed a lawsuit following his defeat in a close race with Kris Mayes.
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