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Arizona prosecution of fake electors

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Arizona v. Ward
CourtArizona Superior Court in and for the County of Maricopa
Full case name State of Arizona v. Kelli Ward, et al.
Docket nos.CR2024-006850 (93 SGJ 81)[1]
Charge
List of charges
  • Conspiracy
  • Forgery
  • Fraudulent schemes and artifices
  • Fraudulent schemes and practices
Case history
Prior action
Plea bargains (pre-trial)
  • Pellegrino: 3 years probation
Court membership
Judge sittingBruce Cohen

State of Arizona v. Kelli Ward, et al. is a state criminal prosecution concerning the Trump fake electors plot in Arizona.

The eighteen defendants, including eleven Arizona Republicans and seven Donald Trump associates, are accused of producing and attempting to use a certificate of ascertainment to falsely claim Trump had won the state's electoral votes in the 2020 U.S. presidential election in Arizona.[2][3] The eleven fake electors included former Arizona Republican Party chair Kelli Ward, who allegedly led ten other Republicans in signing the fraudulent certificate. Charges against one of the seven Trump associates, Jenna Ellis, were dropped after she agreed to cooperate with the prosecution.

The indictment contains nine criminal counts, including felony fraud, forgery and conspiracy. The case is set to head to trial on January 5, 2026.[4]

Background

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Main articles: Trump fake electors plot and Attempts to overturn the 2020 United States presidential election

Joe Biden won the 2020 presidential election in Arizona, carrying the state by 10,457 votes,[5] and gaining all of the state's eleven electoral votes.[3] Incumbent President Donald Trump lost the election in Arizona (as well as nationally), in both the popular vote and in the electoral votes. Trump and his allies refused to accept the election results, launching an extensive and ultimately unsuccessful campaign seeking to subvert the election outcome and remain in power. Lawsuits filed by Trump and Arizona Republicans, seeking to overturn the election in Arizona, were all rejected by the courts.[3][6]

On December 2, 2020, Sidney Powell filed the suit Bowyer v. Ducey on behalf of 14 people, 11 of whom went on to become fake electors. The suit sought to decertify the election or certify Trump electors. It and its appeals were dismissed or rejected all the way up to the Supreme Court.

On December 14, 2020, Arizona's legitimate electors met to formally cast their ballots for Biden, typically a procedural formality.[5] On the same day, the 11 Arizona fake electors—designated by the Republican Party as the slate for Trump—gathered at the Arizona Republican Party headquarters in Phoenix and signed a certificate of ascertainment falsely asserting that they were the "duly elected and qualified" electors, and purporting to cast the state's electors for Trump.[5][7] The Arizona Republican Party posted video of the signing on social media, including Twitter, that day.[5][8][9] As part of Trump's pressure campaign to overturn the election results, similar slates of "alternate" Republican Party electors cast invalid electoral votes for Trump in other swing states where Trump was defeated, namely Georgia, Michigan, and Nevada.[5] The fake electors' certificates were sent to Congress and the National Archives, which did not accept them.[3]

In 2021, Maricopa County ballots were audited by Arizona Republican senators to search for fraud that might show Trump had won Arizona. No fraud was found.[10]

Grand jury investigation

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Arizona Attorney General Mark Brnovich, a Republican, did not investigate the matter;[11][12] the Arizona Republic noted that Brnovich "had tried to straddle election denialism during his time in office."[5]

Brnovich's successor, Democrat Kris Mayes (a former Republican), took office in January 2023,[5][13] after winning election in 2022.[14] She examined the fake elector scheme, initially focusing the investigation on actions in Phoenix.[13] She publicly confirmed the existence of an investigation into the scheme in March 2023.[5] As part of the grand jury investigation, Andy Biggs and Paul Gosar, two Trump-allied Republican congressmen who boosted Trump's attempt to subvert the election results—received subpoenas,[5][14] as did other Trump associates.[14] A witness before the grand jury told Politico that the grand jurors took an "energetic and proactive" role in questioning and appeared to have a mix of different political orientations.[14]

In October 2023, Kenneth Chesebro began cooperating with investigators in election interference cases after he pleaded guilty in the Georgia prosecution. Arizona investigators interviewed him in December 2022.[13] Chesebro provided information that allowed Mayes to target Trump allies from out of state who participated in the Arizona scheme.[13]

In addition to the Georgia prosecution, Michigan and Nevada also brought charges against fake electors (see Michigan prosecution of fake electors and Nevada prosecution of fake electors), making Arizona the fourth state to bring criminal charges in connection with the Trump fake electors plot.[13] In November 2022, in a separate case brought by the Arizona attorney general's office, a grand jury indicted Peggy Judd and Tom Crosby, both Republican county supervisors in rural Cochise County, on charges of conspiracy and interference with an election officer, for their refusal to canvass of the county's votes from the November 2022 election by the deadline.[15][16]

Indictment

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On April 25, 2024, an Arizona grand jury in the Arizona Superior Court for Maricopa County handed up a 58-page indictment against 11 Arizona Republicans and seven top Trump aides.[5][1] Each defendant was charged with nine felony counts:[1]

  • Conspiracy with others "known and/or unknown"
  • Fraudulent schemes and artifices for knowingly benefiting from fraud designed for "preventing the lawful transfer of the presidency of the United States, keeping President Donald J. Trump in office against the will of Arizona voters, and depriving Arizona voters of their right to vote and have their votes counted"
  • Fraudulent schemes and practices for concealing facts or making false statements related to both Trump/Pence certificates "filed by the Arizona Republican electors with the Arizona Secretary of State"
  • Forgery (six counts) of Trump/Pence certificates: one filed with the Vice President of the United States, two with the Arizona Secretary of State, two with the Archivist of the United States, and one with the Chief Judge of the federal District Court for the District of Arizona

The indictment alleges that, from the day after the 2020 election, Trump allies began discussing a fake elector scheme to change the election results. This challenges a claim typically made by Republicans that the slate of pro-Trump electors was merely an "alternate" option in the event that the election results were challenged. The indictment also alleges that local Republicans in Arizona in November meanwhile tried to cast doubt on the validity of the election results, and that on November 30, 2020, Giuliani and Ellis came to Phoenix to speak to Rusty Bowers.[13] The alleged acts fall within the approximate date range of the November 3, 2020 election through the electoral vote certification on January 6, 2021.

Defendants

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Fake electors

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Trump aides

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Unindicted co-conspirators

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The indictment describes, but does not name, five unindicted co-conspirators, whom are identifiable based on the indictment's descriptions of their conduct.[5][20]

  1. Donald Trump[20][21]
  2. Kelly Townsend, Republican former state senator[20]
  3. Mark Finchem, Republican former state representative[20]
  4. Kenneth Chesebro, an architect of the scheme to send alternate electors to Congress[5][20]
  5. Jack Wilenchik, an Arizona attorney who worked for the Trump campaign and facilitated the vote by the fake electors[20]

A court filing on August 5, 2024, revealed that members of the grand jury had wanted to indict Trump but that the lead prosecutor had specifically asked them not to; the prosecutor had felt uncertain that there was enough evidence to prosecute Trump successfully and because prosecuting Trump at the state level might have interfered with the federal prosecution.[22]

Arraignments

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Rudy Giuliani took the longest to locate to serve the indictment; he was served on May 17 at his 80th birthday party.[23]

On May 17, John Eastman was arrested and was the first of the defendants to be arraigned for his involvement in the plot. He "plead not guilty", stating "I had zero communications with the electors in Arizona, zero involvement in any of the election litigation in Arizona or legislative hearings."[24] The same day, he would be released from custody without conditions.[25]

On May 21, eleven defendants were arraigned and pleaded not guilty. They included Rudy Giuliani, Christina Bobb, and Kelli Ward.[26][27] Five of these defendants, including Giuliani and Bobb, would appear virtually.[26] Ten of these defendants would be released without bond.[28] However, Giuliani, who for over a week evaded a court summons, was ordered to post a $10,000 bond and was also required to book himself into the custody of the Maricopa County Sheriff's Office within 30 days.[29][30][28]

On June 7, Mark Meadows and Mike Roman were arraigned remotely and pled not guilty.[31]

On June 18, the remaining defendants, Boris Epshteyn, Jenna Ellis, and Jim Lamon, were arraigned remotely and pled not guilty.[32]

Pre-trial proceedings

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On August 26, 2024, following a hearing on whether to dismiss the case,[33] trial judge Bruce Cohen set a trial date for the case for January 5, 2026.[34]

Attempt to move case to federal court

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Attorneys for co-defendant Mark Meadows on August 15 filed a motion to move his case to federal court, citing the Supremacy Clause as a federal defense against the charges against him.[35] Federal district judge John Tuchi denied the motion on September 16.[36]

Guilty pleas

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On August 6, 2024, Loraine Pellegrino, one of 11 Arizona Republicans who falsely claimed to be legitimate presidential electors for Donald Trump, pled guilty to one count of filing a false instrument.[37] The deal included 3 years of unsupervised probation and no jail time.[38]

Cooperation agreement

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On August 5, 2024, Jenna Ellis reached a cooperation agreement with Attorney General Kris Mayes. Ellis signed the agreement the same day.[39] All charges were dropped, and she must cooperate with the prosecution.[40] The previous October, she had pleaded guilty to one felony charge in the Georgia election racketeering prosecution.[41]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ a b c "Arizona v. Ward - Indictment" (PDF). Washington Post. Retrieved April 25, 2024.
  2. ^ a b c Hakim, Danny; Haberman, Maggie (April 24, 2024). "Arizona Charges Giuliani and Other Trump Allies in Election Interference Case". The New York Times.
  3. ^ a b c d e f g h Billeaud, Jacques; Kelety, Josh; Cooper, Jonathan J. (April 24, 2024). "Arizona indicts 18 in case over 2020 election in Arizona, including Giuliani and Meadows". Associated Press.
  4. ^ Durkee, Alison (August 26, 2024). "Trump Allies—Including Giuliani And Mark Meadows—Will Face Arizona Criminal Trial In Jan. 2026". Forbes. Retrieved August 26, 2024.
  5. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l Barchenger, Stacey (April 24, 2024). "Grand jury indicts fake electors who falsely certified Donald Trump as 2020 winner in Arizona". Arizona Republic.
  6. ^ Jim Rutenberg, Jo Becker, Eric Lipton, Maggie Haberman, Jonathan Martin, Matthew Rosenberg and Michael S. Schmidt, 77 Days: Trump's Campaign to Subvert the Election, New York Times (January 31, 2021).
  7. ^ a b Stacey Barchenger & Ray Stern, Following advice or fraud? Elements of AZ fake electors case that will be crucial at trial, Arizona Republic (April 28, 2024).
  8. ^ Morgan Loew; Cody Lillich (July 26, 2022). "Arizona's 'fake elector' plot focus of federal criminal investigation". KTVK.
  9. ^ "The Signing". Republican Party of Arizona. December 14, 2020.
  10. ^ Cooper, Jonathan; Christie, Bob (April 7, 2022). "Arizona AG letter offers no proof of 2020 election fraud". Associated Press. Retrieved April 25, 2024.
  11. ^ Schutsky, Wayne (April 26, 2024). "Meadows, Giuliani, 11 'fake electors' from 2020 are among those indicted in Arizona". National Public Radio.
  12. ^ Merica, Dan (June 10, 2021). "Arizona attorney general, slammed by Trump, announces Senate bid". CNN.
  13. ^ a b c d e f g h i j Wingett Sanchez, Yvonne (April 24, 2024). "Meadows, Giuliani and other Trump allies charged in Arizona 2020 election probe". The Washington Post.
  14. ^ a b c d Kyle Cheney and Betsy Woodruff Swan, Arizona grand jury indicts Meadows, Giuliani, other Trump allies for 2020 election interference, Politico (April 24, 2024).
  15. ^ Yvonne Wingett Sanchez, Arizona officials charged with conspiring to delay midterm election outcome, Washington Post (November 29, 2023).
  16. ^ Arizona indicts 18 Republicans, including Giuliani, Meadows, over 2020 fake elector scheme, Associated Press (April 24, 2024).
  17. ^ "Tyler Bowyer". Turning Point USA. Archived from the original on December 7, 2021. Retrieved April 25, 2024.
  18. ^ a b c Lerner, Kira (January 31, 2022). "Trump's fake electors: Here's the full list". Louisiana Illuminator.
  19. ^ Sanchez, Yvonne. "Jim Lamon is the first Republican to enter Arizona's 2022 Senate race". The Arizona Republic. Retrieved May 3, 2021.
  20. ^ a b c d e f Mary Jo Pitzl, Arizona fake electors case outlines 5 unindicted co-conspirators. Who are they?, Arizona Republic (April 25, 2024).
  21. ^ Ian McKinney, 'Fake electors' indictment charges GOP leaders with felony fraud, forgery, Cronkite News (April 25, 2024).
  22. ^ Cohen, Zachary; Lybrand, Holmes (August 7, 2024). "Arizona grand jurors wanted to indict Trump, prosecutors urged them not to". CNN. Retrieved August 7, 2024.
  23. ^ Afshar, Paradise; Lah, Kyung; Shelton, Shania (May 18, 2024). "Rudy Giuliani served with Arizona indictment at 80th birthday bash". CNN. Retrieved May 18, 2024.
  24. ^ Marquez, Alexandra; Tabet, Alex (May 17, 2024). "Former Trump attorney John Eastman pleads not guilty in Arizona election interference case". NBC News. Retrieved May 17, 2024.
  25. ^ Cohen, Zachery; Shelton, Shania; Lah, Kyung (May 17, 2024). "John Eastman, former Trump lawyer, pleads not guilty in Arizona election interference case". CNN. Retrieved May 21, 2024.
  26. ^ a b Marquez, Alexandra; Tabet, Alex (May 21, 2024). "Trump allies plead not guilty in Arizona 'fake electors' case". NBC News. Retrieved May 21, 2024.
  27. ^ Lybrand, Holmes; Lah, Kyung (May 21, 2024). "Rudy Giuliani and 10 others plead not guilty to charges of conspiring to overturn the 2020 presidential election in Arizona". CNN. Retrieved May 21, 2024.
  28. ^ a b Goudsward, Andrew (May 21, 2024). "Giuliani told to post bond in Arizona election case after alleged evasion". Reuters. Retrieved May 21, 2024.
  29. ^ Lybrand, Holmes; Lah, Kyung; Hannah, Jack (May 21, 2024). "Rudy Giuliani and 10 others plead not guilty to charges of conspiring to overturn the 2020 presidential election in Arizona". CNN. Retrieved May 21, 2024.
  30. ^ Duhownik, Joe (May 21, 2024). "Giuliani, Arizona GOP leaders plead not guilty in election interference case". Courthouse News. Retrieved May 21, 2024.
  31. ^ Steakin, Will (June 7, 2024). "Former Trump aides Mark Meadows, Mike Roman plead not guilty in Arizona fake electors case". ABC News. Retrieved June 7, 2024.
  32. ^ Tabet, Alex (June 18, 2024). "Trump legal advisers Jenna Ellis and Boris Epshteyn plead not guilty in Arizona 'fake electors' case". NBC News. Retrieved June 21, 2024.
  33. ^ Billeaud, Jacques (August 26, 2024). "Rudy Giuliani did nothing illegal in Arizona's fake elector case, his lawyer says". The Associated Press. Retrieved August 26, 2024.
  34. ^ Cohen, Zachary (August 26, 2024). "Arizona judge sets 2026 trial date for Trump allies accused of trying to subvert the 2020 election". CNN. Retrieved August 26, 2024.
  35. ^ Sanchez, Yvonne (August 15, 2024). "Mark Meadows tries to move his Arizona case to federal court". The Washington Post. Retrieved August 26, 2024.
  36. ^ Cheney, Kyle (September 16, 2024). "Mark Meadows loses bid to transfer Arizona election case to federal court". Politico.
  37. ^ Cheney, Kyle (August 6, 2024). "Arizona Republican becomes first fake elector to plead guilty for role in Trump scheme". Politico. Retrieved August 7, 2024.
  38. ^ Gomez, Gloria Rebecca (August 6, 2024). "First guilty plea in AZ fake elector case comes from GOP activist Lorraine Pellegrino". Arizona Mirror. Retrieved August 7, 2024.
  39. ^ Tabet, Alex; Hillyard, Vaughn (August 5, 2024). "Former Trump lawyer Jenna Ellis to cooperate with prosecutors in Arizona 'fake electors' case". NBC News. Retrieved August 5, 2024.
  40. ^ Taylor, Richie (August 5, 2024). "Attorney General Mayes Announces Cooperation Agreement in Fake Electors Case | Arizona Attorney General". www.azag.gov. Retrieved August 5, 2024.
  41. ^ Weissert, Will; Brumback, Kate (October 24, 2023). "Jenna Ellis becomes latest Trump lawyer to plead guilty over efforts to overturn Georgia's election". Associated Press. Retrieved October 24, 2023.
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