Topline
A federal judge granted a Maricopa County, Arizona, motion for sanctions against Republican gubernatorial candidate Kari Lake Thursday, meaning she will have to pay a fine one week after filing a lawsuit accusing county election officials of violating elections laws.
Lake made public allegations against Maricopa County election officials.
Key Facts
U.S. District Judge John Tuchi said in his decision that Lake made “false, misleading and unsupported factual assertions” in her initial lawsuit claiming “unauthorized persons” manipulated voting machines during Arizona’s gubernatorial election.
Tuchi cites insufficient evidence supporting any of Lake’s claims, adding the plaintiffs—members of Lake’s election staff in addition to Lake herself—”have voted on paper ballots, contradicting allegations and representations” of statements made by Lake.
Steve Bannon—who served as President Donald Trump’s chief strategist—was not named in the sanctions despite counseling Lake in her bid to contest election results.
Sanctions must be enough to “deter repetition” of similar allegations in the future in addition to the payment of Katie Hobbs’ attorney fees, but it is not yet clear how much Lake will have to pay.
Crucial Quote
“Imposing sanctions in this case is not to ignore the importance of putting in place procedures to ensure that our elections are secure and reliable,” Tuchi said. “It is to make clear that the court will not condone litigants ignoring the steps that Arizona has already taken toward this end and furthering false narratives that baselessly undermine public trust at a time of increasing disinformation about, and distrust in, the democratic process.”
What To Watch For
Cochise County, Arizona, the lone county in the U.S. refusing to certify midterm election results, was ordered by a judge Thursday to have its Board of Supervisors canvass the election, according to ABC.
Key Background
Lake has remained adamant in her refusal to concede to Katie Hobbs, who won Arizona’s gubernatorial election by 0.6% of the vote, according to the Associated Press. Trump joined in on Lake’s unfounded claims on Truth Social alleging ballot tabulator issues skewed results in Hobb’s favor and accused election officials of running a “criminal voting operation.” State Attorney General Mark Brnovich has since called on the county to produce a report on its voting machines after his office received complaints about the election process.
Further Reading
Source: https://www.forbes.com/sites/tylerroush/2022/12/01/false-misleading-accusations-federal-judge-sanctions-kari-lake-for-challenging-arizonas-voting-procedures/