The Maricopa County Board of Supervisors in Arizona announced on Monday that it will replace all of its voting machines used in the 2020 presidential election following its audit.
“Today, Maricopa County responded to Arizona Secretary of State Katie Hobbs’ May 20, 2021 letter, in which she informed the County it should never again use the subpoenaed tabulation equipment that was compromised by the Arizona Senate,” the county said in a statement.
“The voters of Maricopa County can rest assured, the County will never use equipment that could pose a risk to free and fair elections.”
Maricopa County will never use compromised equipment that could pose a risk to free and fair elections. As a result, the County will not use the tabulation equipment subpoenaed by the Arizona Senate in any future elections. Read more: https://t.co/47bg4J00MG
— Maricopa County (@maricopacounty) June 28, 2021
“The County recognizes Secretary Hobbs’ authority under A.R.S. § 16-442 to certify equipment for use in Arizona’s elections. As a result, the County will not use the subpoenaed equipment in any future elections,” the board added.
The concerns related to election equipment were noted in February, the county said.
“Maricopa County noted this potential risk in February when it asked the court for guidance on the Senate subpoenas,” the board said in a statement. “Since then, the County has implemented back up plans that include acquiring new tabulation equipment for the March and May jurisdictional elections in 2021.”
The county expects to have new equipment in place in time for the November 2021 election.
“With the backup equipment and the other certified tabulation equipment not subpoenaed, the Board of Supervisors, Elections Department and Recorder’s Office are working with our current vendor to replace the subpoenaed equipment so we will be able to serve voters for the November 2021 election,” the board said.
Democrats who opposed the audit and use of the firm Cyber Ninjas claim the information could have been compromised. Many Republicans have instead argued the Dominion Voting System machines were at fault.
Ban ALL fraud machines! https://t.co/KHABrqTOBH
— Wendy Rogers (@WendyRogersAZ) June 28, 2021
The Arizona Senate has still not received voting machine server information or passwords.
Some conservatives argue Arizona’s Democratic secretary of state is attempting to remove evidence prior to the expected August audit report.
The county’s statement comes in response to a letter from Hobbs advising the county to replace its voting machines over possible compromise.
Maricopa County Attorney Allister Adel responded to the letter on Monday.
“The Board shares your concerns,” Adel said. “It also recognizes your authority as Arizona’s Chief Election Officer to determine what equipment is acceptable for use in Arizona’s elections, as provided byA.R.S. § 16-442.”
It concluded, “Accordingly, I write to notify you that Maricopa County will not use the subpoenaed election equipment in any future election.”
The statement comes as Maricopa County recently completed its 2020 presidential election audit.
Audit Update: Paper examination and counting are finished today. Thank you to all the amazing Arizona volunteers who made this audit possible! 🇺🇸
— Maricopa Arizona Audit (@ArizonaAudit) June 26, 2021
The November election was won by now-President Joe Biden by about 10,000 votes in Arizona, but former President Donald Trump has disputed that result.
