'Botched': Arizona GOP's ballot count ends, troubles persist

[teach1st]

Source: Associated Press

Arizona Republicans’ partisan review of the 2020 election results got off to a rocky start when their contractors broke rules for counting ballots and election experts warned the work was dangerous for democracy.

When the auditors stopped the counting and returned the ballots this week, it hadn’t gotten better. In the last week alone, the only audit leader with substantial election experience was locked out of the building, went on the radio to say he was quitting, then reversed course hours later. The review’s Twitter accounts were suspended for breaking the rules. A conservative Republican senator withdrew her support, calling the process “botched.” And the lead auditor confirmed what was long suspected: that his work was almost entirely paid for by supporters of Donald Trump who were active in the former president’s movement to spread false narratives of fraud.

All this came nearly 100 days into a process that was supposed to take “about 60 days,” according to the Senate Republicans who launched it. And it’s not over yet. Contractors are now producing a report on the findings that could take weeks or more to write.

The turmoil casts even more doubt on the conclusions of what backers describe as a “forensic audit” but what experts and critics say is a deeply flawed, partisan process.

Read more: https://apnews.com/article/arizona-election-2020-e31f6eb911adb01086281291ca9e6dcf

[Eliot Rosewater]

1. GOP will look at this and realize the mistake was allowing the election to be certified in the

first place.

They simply will not certify any election from here forward that they lose where they have the power to not certify.

Is my prediction.

[CrispyQ]

21. +1!

Every precinct, every election, now has the potential to be a total clusterfuck. I am seriously struggling with people I know who still identify with the repub party. They basically support the silencing of our voice.

[aggiesal]

26. Voting comes down to certification ...

I'm by no means an expert, but I was a part of the Election Integrity group in San Diego County back in the early 2000's.

What I found out is that most states and counties have a certify date.
San Diego County I believe had 30 days to certify their elections.
I don't know what that means.
Does it mean that they have to certify regardless?
Or does it mean that they have to state why they are not certifying the election?

I can't believe that they can NOT certify without cause, and I don't believe that
rumors would be considered as a cause to NOT certify.

These actions will be played out in court, which ever way it goes, and
if 2020 was any indication, they better provide proof that something was wrong
to NOT certify an election. Judges will throw rumors out.

[Martin68]

38. Yes, Eliot, that has propelled GOP state legislators to give their legislators the power to override

election officials. Who have been constitutionally protected against interference from legislators.

[LastLiberal in PalmSprings]

2. What's seldom mentioned is the cost of replacing all the voting machines once they're opened.

A Pennsylvania state legislator has called for a "forensic audit," but he's been blown off. "It's time to move beyond 2020," said the three person board which is responsible for such things. It's estimated the cost of replacing the machines is $31 million, not including the cost of labor to install them.

[KS Toronado]

23. In this day and age of computer hackers

and they'll only get smarter & more devious and the machines more expensive, let's get rid of both of them.
Paper ballots are cheaper and provide a paper trail in case of an audit. The simple fact that Republicans
insist on using machines vs a paper ballot should tell us something, like they use them to cheat.
Only way they know how to win elections.....cheating.

[LastLiberal in PalmSprings]

30. +1000

Canadians use paper ballots with very little trouble. Even though Australia uses voting machines, the software is open source so anyone can verify it. In our country, the companies that provide the machines insist their software is "proprietary," and thus we have to "trust them."

[The Wizard]

34. Why the secrecy in vote counting

They're not protecting defense secrets.

[KS Toronado]

37. Because someone is cheating....

In 2014 when Sam Brownback barely won reelection to be KS Governor, a journalist with a sharp eye
noticed that all the votes that came in after 10pm were all for Sam Brownback. Through the open
records act or freedom of information act she asked to see the records to no avail, then got a Judge
to issue a subpoena for them but the reQublicans stalled & stalled and after 2 or 3 years she gave up.
Who counts the votes decides who wins. That's why I'm a firm believer in voting machines should
be thrown out and go strictly paper ballots.

[bahboo]

3. why is this joke being allowed to continue...

jesus fucking christ....

[stopdiggin]

5. because the GOP is in firm control of the state government

full stop.

There is nothing to say this is not legal (or reproducible) in the next election, or the next state. There are some very good guidelines (templates) out there for organizing and conducting free and fair elections - and audits and recounts if and when necessary. But - there is virtually nothing saying that a party in power must adhere to those standards.

People have long accused politicians and parties of having no ethics or standards ... We are now being treated to a much better view of what that really looks like. Enjoy!

[CrispyQ]

22. If no federal election laws were broken during this fraudit,

then there's a big problem with our laws. And if election laws were broken, why wasn't anything done? Can anyone answer if fed election laws were broken?

[stopdiggin]

36. perhaps laws are needed

(and constitutionality undoubtedly is a factor here) But I'm assuming that if current laws were breached the DOJ would have intervened. This is what I mean when I say state house control. Full stop.

[Traildogbob]

9. I have always wondered

Can Jesus do that? He does have manic powers. Is that why he never got married? But…. I agree with you 100 percent. Jesus Fucking Christ this shit needs to be prosecuted.

[mopinko]

4. iow- they didnt find shit.

and they cant even come up w a single thing to wave at the world.

[stopdiggin]

6. Oh - they'll come UP with stuff

and they'll wave it around wildly. bet on it.

[mopinko]

7. if they could, they would have by now.

[stopdiggin]

10. they HAVE dribbled or 'leaked' out various BS findings

Remember the 'bamboo paper' kerfuffle? Landed with kind of a flop. As it deserved. Note I didn't say that there would be anything of real value or quality being put forward. But when has that stopped them in the past? These people live in the world of conspiracy and delusion. Rest assured - they will still be slinging BS around ... And there will be a willing audience for it over at Newsmax and Fox.

"Contractors are now producing a report on the findings that could take weeks or more to write."

And they can hardly write a report saying in essence, "nothing to see here." Right?

[mopinko]

13. missing my point. if they had any kind of turd they could polish, they would be showing it off.

they got nuthin. and yeah, that's not the report they are being paid to write.
but there is no there there. they cant put out enough smoke to fool a toddler.

[stopdiggin]

16. agreed.

When it comes to anything solid ... No 'there' there. Unfortunately - that doesn't have much effect on the Murdoch, Qanon faction.

[mopinko]

17. yeah, but at a certain point someone shines a light on that shit.

they have to sell it in the light of day and they know it.
there is a line here. on the other side is prison.

[reACTIONary]

35. I agree. My thought exactly. nt

[barbtries]

8. it's a huge joke!

are taxpayers having to pay for this farce?

[dobleremolque]

11. Only $150,000 of it, appropriated by the State Senate from tax funds. The remaining $4+ million

más o menos, came from Trump supporters; the largest $3.2 million chunk of which was from the former CEO of Overstock.com.

[asiliveandbreathe]

15. Yes, and last but not least, we the AZ tax payers..$3M..for new

voting machines in Maricopa County...

[barbtries]

18. thank you.

i pay taxes, but i'd be much happier if i had a say in where the money went. or not as the case may be. NO home schools. NO religious schools. NO religion.

healthcare, poverty, education. that's what I would feel good about when paying my taxes.

[Champp]

12. Tuff nutz for Republican cheaters, losers, and traitors

It sux to be u.

[BumRushDaShow]

14. And the media is trying to legitimize what is basically election fraud right before their eyes

by treating these purported "forensic audits" as if they were part of some "normal" process, despite the myriad of recounts and audits that were already done in that state according to their state laws, and despite multiple failed and frivolous lawsuits.

[monkeyman1]

19. oh crap , you mean no bamboo in them , trump & republican follies ! lmao !!!

[SergeStorms]

20. I'm shocked! Shocked, I tell you!

Who could have foreseen the "Cyber Ninjas" having trouble auditing an election where there weren't any inconsistencies?

Yet MF45 still sits on the $75 million or so he bilked out of his cult for his major "Stop the Steal" campaign. Who could possibly have seen that coming?

[nvme]

24. I am so damned angry at Justice Dept. for this

They should have stepped in long ago. The ballots in this fustercluck should never have been left with these idiots.(based on the name alone Cyber Ninjas, really?!) I don't leave my 2 year old nephew alone in a room with a fork near an electric socket; why the hell would anyone leave these morons(apologies to morons) alone with ballots in a federal election?
Justice needs to stop being chicken shits and stop worrying if we are going to look like bullies. Guess what? that cherry has been popped.
Democracy is hemorrhaging and we are peeing ourselves to save the feelings of the rethuglican shitbags that want to drown democracy like a baby in a bathtub.
"If you don't stand for something you fall for anything"
Alexander Hamilton

[riversedge]

25. I am with you. well said.

[nvme]

27. It just gets me hot!

This plays right into The Russian's playbook of sowing doubt and dissention in the USA. They are trying to get us to doubt the institution of democracy.
Divide and conquer.
I was damned pissed, shocked, and dumbfounded, when the pumpkin beat the election in 2016. I hated every minute of the tinpot dictator.
I did my part and voted in the midterms.
I hated it watching Merrick Garland got shit on. I raised hell. I never took up arms. I realize when I lose a fight to do better in the next round.
These fuckers are killing us though (on many levels) and we need to stop being polite and toe the line. We need to stand up to them. I am not saying do anything violent or the like. We need to act grown and tell them NO and let them tantrum till they cry themselves to sleep.

[RussellCattle]

28. The fact that "news correspondents" from OAN, Trump's favorite news source, contributed money....

....to fund this farce, should be enough to ban the network from covering anything in the future. Quoting from the article:

On Wednesday night, Logan ended months of silence about who was paying him when he said a whopping $5.7 million had been contributed by political groups run by prominent Trump supporters including Michael Flynn, Sidney Powell, Patrick Byrne and correspondents from One America News Network. The figure dwarfs the $150,000 to be paid by the Senate.

[LastLiberal in PalmSprings]

29. This was botched the first day of the exercise.

It should have not been allowed to begin. The only reason it happened at all was that TFG lost. Cyber Ninjas didn't count any of the votes for statewide offices, so it must have been a conspiracy only to deny T***** of his rightful victory.

The T***** supporter who owns Cyber Ninjas has found a cash cow. Each time he finishes the task he was ostensibly hired to do -- e.g., "counting" the ballots -- he finds something else that absolutely has to be done. Meanwhile the taxpayers keep getting soaked, first for the farce counting, and then tens of millions of dollars it will cost to replace all of the voting machines that were decertified in search for evidence of fraud.

[Marcuse]

31. It's still serving it's purpose.

[Yo_Mama_Been_Loggin]

32. Cyber Nincompoops

[Marthe48]

33. I can't wait for lawsuits vs. fraudit

and stop the real steal.

Let's call spades, spades. It was partisan hack job, meant to mollify a traitor, meant to keep our country divided.