Democrat Charged with Tampering Arizona Abortion Ballot Signatures

By Staff Reporter |

A Maricopa County man faces legal repercussions for allegedly falsifying signatures on a ballot petition aimed at legalizing abortion in Arizona. Anthony “Tony” Lee Harris, 53, registered as a Democrat, has been indicted on two felony and eleven misdemeanor charges, including aggravated taking the identity of another and fraudulent schemes and practices.

Harris reportedly sought to assist in qualifying Proposition 139, the Arizona Abortion Access Act (AAAA), for the November ballot. The proposition ultimately passed, garnering over 61 percent of the vote with more than two million supporting versus approximately 1.2 million opposing.

Maricopa County Attorney Rachel Mitchell noted in a press release that the “dozens” of signatures implicated in Harris’s case were insufficient to invalidate the initiative. Last July, AAAA activists submitted over 823,000 signatures, with about 578,000 verified by the secretary of state’s office, surpassing the required threshold of around 384,000.

Despite prior convictions rendering him ineligible, Harris registered as a petition circulator for AAAA in April. Historical records reveal that a man with the same name and birth date had previous charges related to armed robbery and kidnapping over a decade ago.

Arizona law bars individuals from servicing as circulators if they have specific criminal convictions or penalties. A notarized affidavit of eligibility is required to establish proper registration.

Harris allegedly forged signatures shortly after his registration, specifically between April 22 and 27, last year. He was employed as a paid circulator for Fieldworks LLC, part of a larger network involving over 2,300 contract circulators for the AAAA petition.

Harris is not alone in facing charges; Michele Brimmer, another Democrat aged 52, has also been indicted for her role in the alleged signature fraud. Brimmer faces five felony and nine misdemeanor charges. Similar to Harris, her fraudulent signatures did not impact the qualification of the proposition for the ballot.

Mitchell emphasized the seriousness of the crime, stating, “Fraudulent signatures undermine public trust in elections. It will not be tolerated, and those who engage in such conduct will be held accountable.” Brimmer also circulated for the One Fair Wage Action initiative, Raise the Wage AZ, though its signatures were withdrawn amid validity challenges.

Funding for the AAAA initiative exceeded $36 million, with over $9.2 million allocated to Fieldworks for signature collection efforts.