In a March 2022 report, the office of former Attorney General Mark Brunovich found that a series of voter fraud allegations stemming from the Arizona Senate’s audit of the 2020 Maricopa County election were “unfounded” or substantiated. I found no.

Still, in a inflammatory “interim report” issued the following month, the former AG strongly suggested I had a problem with the election.

“We have come to the conclusion that the 2020 election in Maricopa County reveals serious vulnerabilities that must be addressed and raises questions about the 2020 election in Arizona,” Brunovich wrote. Letter of April 2022.

Months later, the September 2022 report produced by investigators from the AG’s office was even more conclusive than the March review. Of the hundreds of allegations of election fraud filed in the office, he had enough evidence to warrant prosecution in only five. And according to a September report, high-profile accusations by conservative lawmakers and groups linked to the audit, including Cyber ​​Ninjas, True the Vote and Verity Vote, were uniformly unfounded. .

“In each case, in each case, the aforementioned parties provided no evidence to support their claims,” ​​the report states.

But Brnovic, who resigned last month, did not release the report in either March or September.

A document released Wednesday by Brnovic’s successor, Attorney General Chris Mays, highlighted the disconnect between the results of an internal investigation into voter fraud and public statements. and September reports, as well as a document showing proposed edits to the draft April 2022 interim report.

Democrat Chris Mays smiles before a televised debate on Sept. 28, 2022. Mays defeated Hamade in that election and is now the state attorney general. (AP Photo/Ross D. Franklin)

Mays said the documents showed his predecessor wasted his time trying to delve into allegations of election fraud.

“Having spent more than 10,000 hours avidly researching every conspiracy theory under the sun, this office has been distracted from its core mission of protecting the people of Arizona from actual crime and fraud. ‘, she wrote in a tweet after the documents were released on Wednesday.

The March and September reports represent an encyclopedic inventory of widespread voter fraud allegations that have swirled around Arizona since the 2020 presidential election led by Joe Biden.

Former President Donald Trump never admitted losing that election, and his election fraud allegations sparked a nationwide campaign to sow suspicion over the election in Arizona.2020 Election Results The veto helped fuel the campaign for the top Republican in Arizona in the 2022 cycle. These include Gubernatorial Candidate Kari Lake, U.S. Senator Candidate Blake Masters, and Secretary of State Candidate Mark Finkem.

Brnovic also ran for president last year, but was unable to get out of the Republican primary. In the months leading up to his GOP election in August, Brnovic faced problems such as: abnormal pressure announced indictments from Trump and other election officials related to what they called widespread voter fraud.

In an interim report in April, Brnovic claimed that his office was “fully involved in successfully defending Arizona’s election integrity law,” adding that “the aftermath of the 2020 election will He seemed to be talking to those officials when he claimed that he left no stone unturned.

But documents released this week underscore that Brnovic’s office knew more than it had allowed in 2022. (Neither March nor September, Brnovic did not disclose.)

In September, the AGO reported receiving 638 complaints, 430 investigations, and 22 final charges. These prosecutions include cases of individuals who voted using ballots intended for deceased relatives and cases in Yuma County where someone illegally dumped someone else’s ballot. The report adds that even cases that were not investigated received an “initial review and assessment.”

The report highlights allegations of election fraud by Senator Sonny Borelli, R-Lake Havasu City, R-Flagstaff Senator Wendy Rogers, R-Flagstaff, and former Oro Valley state representative Finchem. Lawmakers apparently changed their tone when AGO investigators asked about their remarks. “When speaking with our representatives, and under circumstances where ARS 13.2907.01 (False Reporting to Law Enforcement; It didn’t repeat or go,” the September report said.

The difference between the AG’s investigation and Brnovich’s public allegations can be clearly seen in the document providing “additional considerations” for the April 2022 interim report. The document, sent to other staff by investigator Reginald Grigsby, suggested that Brnovic toned down some of the language in an early draft of the report.

In the draft, Brnovic writes:

The “Additional Considerations” document recommends saying something completely different. The SIS staff concluded that the MCRO followed its policies/procedures as they pertained to signature verification. No crime or fraud was committed in this area during the 2020 general election. ”

Ultimately, the final interim report contained the following new text: Maricopa County’s early ballot signature verification system is inadequate to prevent abuse. “

Wednesday’s release was met with mixed reactions from election officials who faced pressure and even death threats related to election fraud allegations.

Maricopa County Superintendent Clint Hickman wrote in a news release that he was “absolutely disgusted by this revelation.”

“[Brunovic]not only ignored his own investigators in issuing another ‘interim report,’ he falsely suggested wrongdoing by Maricopa County, never corrected the record, and the team This was a gross abuse of the office he elected, an appalling waste of taxpayer money, and a waste of the time and effort of professional investigators. It was also a waste of money,” Hickman added.

Maricopa County Registrar Steven Richer said he was pleased the document set the record straight for his office’s cooperation with election investigations. Brnovic insisted that the recorder would not come, but Richer strongly denied it.

“I am delighted that the memo and documents released today underscore the way our office has collaborated with and assisted the Attorney General’s Office,” he said in an email.