The refusal by officials in Cochise County in Arizona to certify their midterm results is a reminder of the toxic staying power of election denial.

News Roundup: Election Denial Is Alive in Arizona
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On Thursday, an Arizona court ordered officials ([link removed]) in Cochise County to certify their local midterm elections after they missed Monday’s statewide legal deadline.

The refusal ([link removed]) by two of the three members of the Cochise board of supervisors to certify was a response to problems on Election Day with printers in Maricopa County, problems that — despite the Maricopa officials having confirmed ([link removed]) that ([link removed]) the issues did not ([link removed]) disenfranchise any voters — have ballooned into the now-familiar cries of foul play and conspiracy-tinged protest ([link removed]) .

The Cochise officials’ refusal, which prompted a lawsuit from Arizona Secretary of State Katie Hobbs, is a reminder of the toxic staying power of election denial, even after the defeat last month of several high-profile candidates who were beholden to partisan lies about election fraud.
* This week, in a sharply worded opinion, a judge ordered sanctions ([link removed]) against the attorneys of Arizona gubernatorial candidate Kari Lake — who lost to Hobbs and still hasn’t conceded — and secretary of state candidate Mark Finchem, who had filed a lawsuit in April to block Maricopa and Pima counties from using electronic voting machines. The case had been dismissed in August.
* A county in northeastern Pennsylvania, finally certified ([link removed]) its election this week after also missing its deadline.
* Also in Pennsylvania, supporters of defeated gubernatorial candidate Doug Mastriano are inundating state courts with recount petitions ([link removed]) .


And as Maricopa County continues to be a hotbed of election conspiracy theories, American Oversight has obtained text messages ([link removed]) from last year’s discredited “audit” of the county’s 2020 vote. They include numerous exchanges between Cyber Ninjas CEO Doug Logan and Trump-allied election deniers.
* The records provide more insight into how those in charge of the “audit” anticipated that similar efforts would follow in other states. They also contain messages pointing to tensions between Cyber Ninjas and the America Project, a funder led by Trump ally Patrick Byrne.
* In another text ([link removed]) , Phil Waldron, who was active in Trump’s efforts to overturn the 2020 election, suggested that Trump might donate $1 million to the operation, and asked Logan if he had received a payment from Corey Lewandowski. Logan said he hadn’t.

On the Records

Gov. Abbott’s Anti-Trans Directive
On Tuesday ([link removed]) , we filed an amicus brief in Lambda Legal and the ACLU’s lawsuit over the Texas Department of Family and Protective Services’ implementation of Gov. Greg Abbott’s February directive calling for the provision of gender-affirming care for trans youth to be investigated as child abuse.
* Abbott’s office and DFPS have argued that the implementation of the directive does not constitute an official “rule” under state law.
* But records we obtained reveal that the agency adopted new policies and procedures in response to the directive, with staff and other entities interpreting the changes as a new rule.
* Several DFPS employees expressed confusion and distress over the policy change, and the agency also opened new investigations in response to Abbott’s directive.



Other Stories We're Following

Jan. 6 Investigations
* Final January 6 report expected to focus on issues beyond Trump efforts (CNN ([link removed]) )
* McCarthy demands January 6 committee preserve all records and vows to hold hearings next year (CNN ([link removed]) )
* Oath Keepers founder Stewart Rhodes guilty of Jan. 6 seditious conspiracy (Washington Post ([link removed]) )
* Top Trump advisor Stephen Miller testifies to January 6 federal grand jury (CNN ([link removed]) )
* Anthony Ornato, key Jan. 6 witness, speaks with House panel (New York Times ([link removed]) )
* Wisconsin Assembly Speaker Robin Vos meets with House January 6 committee (CNN ([link removed]) )
* Jan. 6 committee conducts likely final interview, chairman says (CBS News ([link removed]) )


Election Denial
* Experts: Assistant Arizona attorney general who blasted election officials should recuse self from investigation (Arizona Republic ([link removed]) )
* Majority of Arizonans trust elections, despite persistence of election denialism (Arizona Mirror ([link removed]) )
* The out-of-state conspiracy theorists pushing for a 'revote' in Arizona (Arizona Mirror ([link removed]) )
* Former deputy to Tina Peters pleads guilty, agrees to testify for prosecution (Colorado Newsline ([link removed]) )
* Michigan poll worker admitted to using USB drive to get voter data (WOOD TV ([link removed]) )
* Inside the billionaire-backed ‘hub for election denial’ (The Daily Beast ([link removed]) )


Voting Rights
* Dispute over North Carolina congressional districts tees up major elections case at Supreme Court (NBC News ([link removed]) )
* Rejecting improperly dated ballots disproportionately impacts communities of color in Pennsylvania, data shows (Votebeat ([link removed]) )


The Coronavirus
* Twitter ends its ban on Covid misinformation (Washington Post ([link removed]) )
* How Covid myths spread on far-right social media platforms (New York Times ([link removed]) )
* More than 90% of Covid deaths occurring among elderly adults: CDC (ABC News ([link removed]) )
* How rampant abuse by fintech fueled Covid relief fraud (Washington Post ([link removed]) )


Trump Accountability
* House committee receives Donald Trump’s federal tax returns from IRS (CNN ([link removed]) )
* Mark Meadows ordered to testify in Trump investigation (Politico ([link removed]) )
* Turning point for Garland as Justice Dept. grapples with Trump inquiries (New York Times ([link removed]) )
* Closing arguments begin in the Trump Organization’s tax fraud trial (NBC News ([link removed]) )


Immigration
* Identities of thousands of migrants seeking asylum in U.S. posted in error (New York Times ([link removed]) )
* Migrants flown from Texas to Massachusetts sue “Perla,” who recruited them for flights (Texas Tribune ([link removed]) )
* A growing number of Texas rural counties are declaring local immigration “disasters” (Texas Tribune ([link removed]) )


In the States
* DeSantis-backed school boards begin ousting Florida educators (Politico ([link removed]) )
* ‘I was never ready for this’: How states limit teen access to abortion (ProPublica ([link removed]) )
* New York City to involuntarily remove mentally ill people from streets (New York Times ([link removed]) )
* San Francisco considers allowing law enforcement robots to use lethal force (NPR ([link removed]) )
* Indiana attorney general asks medical board to discipline abortion doctor (New York Times ([link removed]) )
* The military pledged to remove unexploded bombs from this island. Native Hawaiians are still waiting (ProPublica ([link removed]) )
* Proposed Ohio ballot issue would require 60 percent majority for all constitutional amendments (Statehouse News Bureau ([link removed]) )

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