Republican Sen. Sonny Borrelli (left) speaks on using the term “conspiracy theory” to refer to false election fraud claims spread by some Republicans March 20, 2023 tempers flared after he advised Senator Juan Mendez (right) to defend him. speaker.Photo by Joe Duhaunik | Court News

Almost a month after Arizona Attorney General Chris Mays release There are documents further disproving claims that fraud is rife in the 2020 election, but Senate Republicans continue to make such claims before the Election Commission.

Republican Senator Sonny Borrelli said in response to a guest speaker who suggested the Republican election security bill was inspired by conspiracy theories, “they didn’t find any criminal fraud that could actually be criminally prosecuted.” “But there were a great many violations of the code’s civil law.”

“For you to make that broad statement and blame everyone …” Lake Havasu Republicans let Tempe Democrat Juan Mendes finish his thoughts before jumping to the speaker’s defense. I did.

“He doesn’t have to follow that rule,” Mendez said, referring to remarks by committee chair Wendy Rogers. set rules for using the word “conspiracy theory” in her committeeThe three went back and forth until Rogers, a Flagstaff Republican, threatened to kick Mendez out of the room.

Borelli got up from his chair and walked around behind the other senators, clearly venting the tension. Staff were forced to call him for each subsequent vote.

Spat came during testimony at HB2415This will remove you from the active early voting mailing list if you do not participate in the election for one year. Republicans said it’s a way to organize early voting lists. They say they’re chock-full of misidentified voters who need to be purged from the system.

Opponents say the bill will only disenfranchise voters, and many will only vote in presidential elections every four years and may not be able to put their names back on early voting lists before it is too late. claimed to have sex.

State Senator Anna Hernandez doubled down while voting against the bill.

A Phoenix Democrat said, “Through courts, investigations, and in every conceivable form, over and over again, these theories have been debunked.”

The “conspiracy theory” came up again later in the committee meeting, but this time HB2591This prohibits voters from dropping ballots into ballot drop boxes outside of the hours of 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. Must be under 24/7 video surveillance.

Hernandez asked sponsors if the bill was inspired by the 2022 documentary 2,000 Mules. The documentary makes false allegations of widespread election fraud, focusing on “voting mules” who allegedly bring hundreds of fraudulent ballots to the ballot box at once.

Gail Griffin, a Tucson Republican congressman who sponsored the bill, said he saw a video of “people with boxes coming and throwing ballots”, but “2,000 mules” It has nothing to do with this bill,” he said.

Democrats said some made it harder to vote by limiting the time voters could drop off their ballots. Republicans said those who can’t make it to the drop-box during normal business hours can vote on Election Day or vote by mail.

“While the bill’s sponsors continued to suggest that traditional mailboxes were an acceptable option for returning ballots, traditional mailboxes were not under 24/7 surveillance and traditional It operates after hours,” said Mendez. “I wonder if sponsors imagine things happening in dropbox that can’t happen in mailboxes.”

Mendez sided with Hernandez, suggesting that the bill was the product of a false claim of “2,000 mules.”

The Republican-dominated commission endorsed five more measures they said would improve the integrity of the election.Sponsored by Surprise Republican Congressman Austin Smith HB2552 Preemptively bans ranked choice voting in Arizona. SB1265passed the Senate in February.

Ranked choice voting is a system in which voters rank all candidates in their ballot in order of preference. If a candidate receives a majority of her first-place votes, that candidate wins outright. If no candidate has a majority, the candidate with the worst performance is dropped and her second-place votes of those voters are redistributed among the remaining candidates. This process continues until the candidate’s vote share exceeds hers’ 50%.

Republicans accused the system of being overly chaotic and inefficient.

But Democrats say the system, which could be put to a vote in 2024 as an initiative of the nonprofit Save Democracy Arizona, might be a better option. Proponents say such a system would force candidates to appeal to a wider audience, thereby reducing the militants’ chances of winning.

Lobbyist Jodie Liggett, representing the Arizona Federation of Women Voters, said more than 60 percent of Arizona voters supported rank-selection voting, which is used in Maine, Alaska, and several cities such as New York and San Francisco. said there is.

“There should be no reason for this elected body to preemptively silence voters’ voices,” she told the committee.

Rogers and the rest of the Republicans said they supported “one person, one vote.”

“Whoever gets 50% plus one wins,” she said. “Everybody understands that. There are no spills in our state.”

The Commission shall HB2613Goodyear representative Steve Montenegro said he sponsored the bill as a matter of national security to prevent foreign entities from interfering in US elections.

Jen Marson, who represents the Arizona County Association, said the machines currently in use are already made in the United States, but some parts, such as plastics and electronics, are sourced from other countries. .

State Senator Ken Bennett, a Phoenix Republican, asked whether the bill would allow foreign-owned companies to manufacture voting machines in the United States.

“I am concerned that this bill treats all groups outside the United States the same whether they are friends or foes,” he said.

Rogers suggested changing it to target enemies of the United States rather than foreign organizations.

Montenegro said he wasn’t sure if US companies had the ability to fully build their own voting machines, but “if there is a need, we believe US engineering thinking will be strengthened.”

Each bill was recommended to pass in a party line vote of 5 to 3 in favor of Republicans.

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