A Phoenix-based newspaper filed legal action against the Arizona Senate and a firm it hired to audit the 2020 election in Maricopa County, demanding access to financial and other records.
The Arizona Republic took the Republican-led body and Cyber Ninjas to court on Wednesday after its earlier requests for audit records made under the Arizona Public Records Law were denied, the paper reported.
The records being sought should be made public as the Senate is the institution that initiated the audit, meaning the Senate and Cyber Ninjas must supply them upon request under state law, the complaint said.
ARIZONA ATTORNEY GENERAL SAYS SUPREME COURT RULING WILL HELP ENSURE ELECTION INTEGRITY
“Arizona law entitles the public to know how this audit is being conducted and funded,” attorney David Bodney said on Wednesday after filing the complaint on the paper’s behalf. “And the Arizona public records law does not permit the Senate to play ‘hide the ball’ by delegating core responsibilities to a third party like Cyber Ninjas and concealing records of government activities and public expenditures in Cyber Ninjas’ files.”
The firm, “by virtue of its performing a core governmental function funded in part by state taxpayer dollars, was required to maintain these public records and make them available” but has “refused to do so,” according to the complaint.
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The state Senate subpoenaed Maricopa County for access to ballots and election equipment in December, which was followed by a court battle and a judge ruling in February the subpoenas were “legal and enforceable.” The Arizona Senate hired private firm Cyber Ninjas to perform an audit of 2.1 million ballots cast in the county, which President Joe Biden carried by 45,000 votes.
Officials in Maricopa County announced on Monday that subpoenaed election machines will not be used in the future after Democratic Secretary of State Katie Hobbs threatened to decertify them, arguing they had been “compromised” during the audit.
The Washington Examiner reached out to a spokesperson for Senate Republicans but did not receive a response.
