Arizona Official Sues Lake For Defamation Over Election Allegations

Kari Lake, the Republican candidate in last year’s Arizona gubernatorial election, has become a prominent figure in the right-wing fight against election fraud since her rival, Democrat Katie Hobbs, was certified as the winner of the race.

Lake has refused to concede defeat and has been a forceful advocate for serious reform measures meant to eliminate irregularities and illegal ballots in future elections.

In February, a court tossed out her challenge to the November election’s results. She vowed at the time to appeal the ruling and continue her pursuit to hold the election again. 

Now, Maricopa County Recorder Stephen Richer is taking Lake to court as part of a defamation case. Richer’s office oversees the state’s voter rolls and he says Lake has falsely implicated him in a scheme to tilt the election in her rival’s favor. 

“Not only would I obviously never do the things that she accuses me of, but also as a matter of Arizona law and election administration processes, I don’t even have responsibility for — or jurisdiction over — the printing of ballots on Election Day,” he said in a statement defending the defamation suit. 

Lake was quick to respond to his allegations, insisting that he is only interested in “silencing” those who supported her campaign.

In addition to claims of illegal ballots being added to the tally on Election Day, Lake has also suggested that GOP-leaning districts were beset by technical problems and voting machine errors.

Former President Donald Trump, who has repeatedly insisted that fraud was a factor in his 2020 re-election loss, called for the Arizona race’s results to be tossed out shortly after the election.

“Massive numbers of ‘BROKEN’ voting machines in Republican Districts on Election Day,” he wrote in a social media post. “Mechanics sent in to ‘FIX’ them made them worse.”

She reiterated her concerns in response to Richer’s lawsuit, insisting that election fraud and corruption were responsible for the election of “disasters” like Hobbs and President Joe Biden.

“The majority of Americans KNOW our elections are fraudulent,” she added. “Those who orchestrated the wide-spread fraud want us to shut-up and accept it.”