Arizona is expected to be one of the most fiercely contested states in the November elections, and officials are preparing for attempts to undermine vote-counting operations.
Control of the Senate and the White House could be determined in the Grand Canyon State, and Arizona Secretary of State Adrian Fontes and Maricopa County recorder Stephen Richer are among those preparing for potential attacks on the systems.
The Associated Press reported that both men have engaged in efforts to rebuild public trust in election results in the state after baseless allegations of widespread voter fraud and irregularities changing results were levied in the 2020 and 2022 elections.
“We’re not talking about American transportation infrastructure or education infrastructure, all the other things that we really want to see develop,” Fontes told the outlet. “That loss of civic faith is the real problem that we have.”
One of Fontes’s efforts includes creating a four-person information security team to gather details about potential attacks on election systems, along with cyberattacks. The team includes an analyst who examines disinformation about elections and voting systems in Arizona.
The state is one of several that have made changes to their election laws since 2020, in addition to Fontes’s recent efforts. In 2022, the state legislature passed a law to require voters to provide proof of citizenship as part of reforms for election integrity, along with changing the threshold for an automatic recount from 0.1% to 0.5%.
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The Senate race between Rep. Ruben Gallego (D-AZ) and Republican Kari Lake, and the presidential race between President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump, are both expected to be hard-fought and could spark fresh allegations of misconduct and fraud against the Arizona voting systems.
The Senate primary in Arizona is scheduled for July 30, while the general election for all races will be held on Nov. 5.
