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- Oath Keepers founder Stewart Rhodes and the leader of the organization’s Florida chapter, Kelly Meggs, were convicted of seditious conspiracy in the plot that culminated in the Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol. Rhodes, Meggs, and three associates were also convicted of obstructing Congress as it met that day to certify the election.
- The House January 6 Select Committee is getting ready to show its work. The committee met this week with its final witnesses: former Trump adviser Kellyanne Conway, Wisconsin Assembly Speaker Robin Vos, and former Secret Service official and White House deputy chief of staff Anthony Ornato. The committee plans to release its report and transcripts of its interviews later this month, chairman Rep. Bennie Thompson told reporters.
- The States United Democracy Center sent a letter urging the House January 6 Select Committee to take additional steps to pursue accountability for lawyers who participated in the months-long effort to overturn the 2020 election. The letter focuses on nine lawyers included in the committee’s subpoena of former President Trump, including John Eastman, Jenna Ellis, and Rudy Giuliani. It outlines how the committee can refer information gathered during its investigation to state bar disciplinary authorities.
Signed, Sealed, Certified
Across the country, states are making their election results official.
That’s because the election doesn’t end with the counting of ballots in the hours and days after we vote. Canvassing and certification follow—the processes by which election officials in each state verify the accuracy of the count and formalize the results.
These steps historically haven’t gotten much attention. That changed in 2020, when allies of former President Trump, lacking evidence and relying on conspiracy theories, tried unsuccessfully to block state certifications.
Things went more smoothly this time around in some key states. In Michigan, the Board of State Canvassers, divided equally between Republicans and Democrats, voted unanimously this week to certify the results of the midterm election.
In Wisconsin, the state Election Commission formalized the results in what the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel called a “quiet and orderly certification.” (A handful of Pennsylvania counties have yet to hand in results to the state, in part because of efforts to seek recounts.)
Procedures and deadlines vary from place to place, but counties and states have a legal responsibility to certify the election results. If they refuse to count all the valid votes and certify the results, they’re breaking the law.
In Arizona this week, the Board of Supervisors in Cochise County initially refused to certify, in violation of its duty under the law. During the meeting, the board argued without evidence that it was concerned tabulation machines were not properly certified. But one supervisor later described that as mostly a pretext and explained that she was really refusing to certify to protest printer malfunction issues on Election Day in a different county, Maricopa, even though no voter was prevented from voting because of those issues.
Secretary of State Katie Hobbs, represented by the States United Democracy Center and Coppersmith Brockelman, took Cochise County to court and asked a judge to order the county to follow the law and certify. The judge did just that. “You will meet today,” Judge Casey McGinley told county officials at a hearing Thursday afternoon.
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“You will canvass the election no later than 5 o’clock.”
The Board followed the judge’s order, although one supervisor refused to attend the meeting. Arizona will certify its statewide results on time on Monday. It was a win for democracy and the rule of law, and for the principle that guides all state certifications: Every voter’s voice must be heard.
Tweet of the Week!
Supervisors in Maricopa County, Arizona, rejected election lies, followed the law, and certified the county’s election this week. Supervisor Steve Gallardo took note of the moment.
Sign up for daily updates here.
Follow States United on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook to stay up-to-date!
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State of the States
In Arizona, a federal judge ordered sanctions against lawyers for Kari Lake, who lost the governor’s race, and Mark Finchem, who lost the race for secretary of state, for what the judge called a “frivolous” lawsuit that they brought earlier this year. The lawsuit sought to stop the use of electronic ballot-counting machines for the November midterm election and would have required a hand count of all ballots in the state. Judge John J. Tuchi dismissed the suit in August. Secretary of State Katie Hobbs, in a motion to dismiss, had pointed out that the suit relied on inaccurate and misleading claims about voting machines. Many were “provably false,” as Hobbs put it, and rooted in conspiracy theories. This week, the judge ordered Lake and Finchem’s lawyers to cover attorney fees for Maricopa County election officials, who were among the defendants in the original suit. Tuchi wrote that the sanctions were meant to make clear that the court won’t condone litigants
“furthering false narratives that baselessly undermine public trust at a time of increasing disinformation about, and distrust in, the democratic process.”
In Georgia, the special grand jury investigating 2020 election interference will hear from Mark Meadows, the former White House chief of staff, after he was ordered by the South Carolina Supreme Court to testify. The court found Meadows’s arguments for avoiding testimony “manifestly without merit.” A group of current and former prosecutors, represented by the States United Democracy Center, had urged the South Carolina justices to reject Meadows’s attempt to avoid appearing, saying that would undermine
“the effectiveness of law enforcement across state borders, not just between South Carolina and its neighbor Georgia, but nationwide.”
Sen. Lindsey Graham testified before the special grand jury for more than two hours last week after losing a series of legal challenges, including at the U.S. Supreme Court. Graham’s office said he “answered all questions” and was treated with respect. Michael Flynn, the former national security adviser, and Newt Gingrich, the former House speaker, are contesting subpoenas for their testimony. Fani Willis, the Fulton County district attorney, is investigating whether Trump allies broke the law in their campaign to overturn President Biden’s win in Georgia.
Tweet of the Week!
Supervisors in Maricopa County, Arizona, rejected election lies, followed the law, and certified the county’s election this week. Supervisor Steve Gallardo took note of the moment.
Sign up for daily updates here.
Follow States United on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook to stay up-to-date!
In the News
The Christian Science Monitor: Reassessing US democracy: Stronger, but not out of the woods. By Simon Montlake
“‘People were tired of lies about 2020. They were tired of hearing these conspiracy theories,’ says Joanna Lydgate, CEO of the States United Democracy Center, a nonpartisan group that supports free and fair elections.”
The Conversation: Healthy democracy requires trust – these 3 things could start to restore voters’ declining faith in US elections. By Sarah Bush and Lauren Prather
“And some elected officials are taking steps to actively undermine not just perceptions of election credibility, but election integrity itself. For example, the nonpartisan organizations States United Democracy Center and Protect Democracy in August 2022 identified 24 bills that have been enacted across 17 states that politicize and interfere with professional election administration.”
AP via PBS: State GOP-backed ‘election integrity’ units find few voter fraud cases after midterms. By Gary Fields, Anthony Izaguirre, and Sudhin Thanawala
“State-level law enforcement units created after the 2020 presidential election to investigate voter fraud are looking into scattered complaints more than two weeks after the midterms but have provided no indication of systemic problems. That’s just what election experts had expected and led critics to suggest that the new units were more about politics than rooting out widespread abuses. Most election-related fraud cases already are investigated and prosecuted at the local level.”
The Hill: Election security a success, but more improvements needed, experts say. By Ines Kagubare
“Despite the myriad of threats that faced the nation during the 2022 midterms, experts say security for the election proved successful overall. They warned, however, that some improvements are still needed in certain areas. Experts praised election officials for being well-prepared and efficient at managing ongoing threats while communicating with voters on how to spot disinformation.”
AP: Judge denies bid for new trial in Whitmer kidnapping case. By staff
“A federal judge has denied a new trial request by two men convicted of conspiring to kidnap Michigan’s Democratic Gov. Gretchen Whitmer. Lawyers for Adam Fox and Barry Croft Jr. alleged misconduct by a juror and unfairness by U.S. District Judge Robert Jonker following their conviction by a federal jury in August. Jonker in a written ruling Friday shot down claims of juror misconduct and said he found ‘no constitutional violation and no credible evidence’ to convene a new hearing.”
The Arizona Republic: Judge dismisses Hamadeh effort to delay certifying results in attorney general race. By Tara Kavaler
“Maricopa County Superior Court Judge Randall Warner on Tuesday dismissed a lawsuit filed by Republican attorney general candidate Abe Hamadeh contesting the results of the Nov. 8 election, finding that the complaint was premature. While dismissed for now, Hamadeh still could file a complaint later, after the expected statewide certification of the election.”
Arizona Mirror: Majority of Arizonans trust elections, despite persistence of election denialism. By Rebecca Gomez
“An overwhelming majority of Arizona voters trust elections and don’t want to see baseless challenges to their outcomes, according to a recent poll.”
CNN: Arizona’s Maricopa County says printer problems did not prevent voting on Election Day. By Maeve Reston, 11/28.
“The Maricopa County Attorney’s Office issued a letter on Sunday stating that the problems with printers on Election Day at some of their voting locations did not prevent voters from lawfully casting their ballots in Arizona’s most populous county.”
The Daily Beast: Out-Of-State Kooks Are Still Demanding a Redo of Arizona Election. By Kelly Weill“Arizona counties certified the results of the midterm elections on Monday. But for conspiracy theorists who traveled from out of state to swamp local election board meetings, the dream of discarding the election results lives on. While most Republican candidates have accepted their losses in an underwhelming GOP midterm performance, Arizona has remained a hotbed for election-denying candidates who suggest (incorrectly) that they actually won their races.”
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Tweet of the Week!
Supervisors in Maricopa County, Arizona, rejected election lies, followed the law, and certified the county’s election this week. Supervisor Steve Gallardo took note of the moment.
Sign up for daily updates here.
Follow States United on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook to stay up-to-date!
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They’re Hiring!
The States United team is growing. We’re building out key positions as we work to protect the integrity of our elections and serve as a resource to state leaders. You can check out our open positions and apply here.
About the States United Democracy Center:
The States United Democracy Center is a nonpartisan organization advancing free, fair, and secure elections. We focus on connecting state officials, law enforcement leaders, and pro-democracy partners across America with the tools and expertise they need to safeguard our democracy. We are more than a think tank—we are an action tank. And together, we are committed to making sure every vote is counted, every voice is heard, and every election is safe. To learn more, visit www.statesuniteddemocracy.org.
About States United Action
States United Action is a nonpartisan section 501(c)(4) nonprofit organization with a mission to protect our elections and our democracy. States United Action advocates for policies that protect election integrity, hold democracy violators accountable, and prevent political violence that threatens to undermine the will of the American people, and amplifies the voices of state leaders and law enforcement leaders who share these values. To learn more, visit www.statesuniteddemocracy.org/states-united-action.
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