Judge Rules 2020 AZ Mail-In Voting Process Illegal

The public interest group Restoring Integrity and Trust in Elections celebrated a significant victory for election integrity after an Arizona court ruling on Friday. In March, RITE initiated a lawsuit against Democratic Arizona Secretary of State Adrian Fontes, alleging that his office’s Elections Procedures Manual violated the law regarding the verification of mail-in ballot signatures.

RITE argued that while state law mandates county recorders to compare mail-ballot signatures with those in the voter’s registration record, the Secretary had instructed them to use a broader and less reliable pool of signature comparisons. This meant that the Secretary was allowing ballots to be counted even if the signature did not match anything in the voter’s registration record, which RITE claimed was a clear violation of state law.

“While state law requires county recorders to match mail-ballot signatures with signatures in the voter’s ‘registration record,’ the Secretary instructed them to use a broader and less reliable universe of comparison signatures,” the group said in a Monday news release.

“That means the Secretary was requiring ballots to be counted despite using a signature that did not match anything in the voter’s registration record. This was a clear violation of state law,” RITE asserted.
Western Journal (2023)

In a Friday ruling that denied a motion to dismiss the case filed by Fontes and the group Mi Familia Vota, Yavapai County Superior Court Judge John Napper concurred with RITE’s interpretation of the law. The court emphasized that the statute was explicit and unambiguous, requiring the recorder to examine the voter’s registration card specifically and not other documents containing the voter’s signature.

Judge Napper further pointed out that there was no ambiguity in the statute or the process. Additionally, the secretary’s signature-matching procedure in the Elections Procedures Manual was found to be in violation of Arizona state law, as it allowed for signature comparisons with documents unrelated to the voter registration process.

Kurt Olsen: “Approximately 274,000 ballots out of 1.3 million cast were compared and signature verified purportedly in less than 3 seconds a ballot. 70,000 in less than 2 seconds a ballot.”

This rate does not meet the signature verification standards set by Arizona law. pic.twitter.com/QFQigDK0Ys
— Kari Lake War Room (@KariLakeWarRoom) May 19, 2023

Unfortunately, since the ballots have been burned by teams led by state governor Katie Hobbs, there can be no recount in the state and no signatures can be verified from ashes.