Cochise County Supervisor Peggy Judd entered into a plea deal to avoid a felony charge after she and another supervisor delayed certification of the 2022 election over concerns of voter fraud, which does not exist in Maricopa County. .
Attorney General Chris Mays announced on Monday Judd entered into an agreement pleading guilty to refusing to perform the duties of an election official, a third-degree misdemeanor. She was sentenced to 90 days of unsupervised probation and must pay a $500 fine.
By avoiding a felony conviction, Judd will be able to keep his voting rights and his seat on the Cochise County Board of Supervisors.
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“Any attempt to interfere with Arizona’s elections will not be tolerated. My office will continue to pursue justice and ensure that anyone who undermines our election system is held accountable.” Mays said in a press release announcing the plea agreement. “Today’s plea agreement and sentence should serve as a strong reminder that I will not hesitate to use every tool available to me to uphold the rule of law and protect the integrity of Arizona’s elections.”
Both Judd and fellow Republican supervisor Tom Crosby was indicted last year He was charged in Maricopa County Superior Court with felony counts of conspiracy and interference with election officials. Republican county supervisors across the state faced intense pressure The decision will not be made to certify the results of the 2022 election after unsubstantiated claims of fraud were spread by elected officials and right-wing influencers.
Mr. Judd and Mr. Crosby both voted to delay certifying election results past the date state law requires an election investigation, citing false claims that vote tabulators in the county were not properly certified. did. The only negative vote was from Democrat Anne English.
In November 2022, Judd told both parties: new york times and daily beast They argued that the delay in certifying the election past legal deadlines was a form of protest over Election Day issues in Maricopa County.
The election was finally certified After the judge orders the supervisor But Cochise County ended up being the only county to miss the Nov. 28 certification deadline, putting the county’s majority Republican vote at risk.
Mr. Mays’ original indictment alleges that Mr. Judd and Mr. Crosby planned to deliberately disobey the law at public meetings and to avoid Gov. Katie Hobbs’ deadline to complete the statewide canvass by a Dec. 5 deadline. He is accused of interfering with his abilities.
A Pima County judge also ordered them last year: Pay $36,000 in legal costs The Secretary of State and the Arizona Alliance for Retired Americans sued regulators for failing to certify the election.
The Cochise County Board of Supervisors has become a hotbed of conspiracy theories. tried to count the ballots by handagain citing baseless claims of voting fraud and voting machine manipulation. Arizona uses all paper ballots, and its only machines are for disabled voters and counting ballots, neither of which are connected to the internet.
The effort was blocked by the Cochise County Superior Court, which held that full-hand counts were illegal, a decision affirmed by the Arizona Court of Appeals.
Judd did not respond to requests for comment from the Arizona Mirror.
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