Ex-SOS Staffer and Media Journalist Challenges Allegations of 2022 Ballot Destruction

By Staff Reporter |

In the ongoing fallout from the 2022 Arizona attorney general race, a former state Secretary of State employee and current reporter has labeled Congressman Abe Hamadeh as “delusional” for his belief that all counties adhered to election laws. Last November, Arizona law mandated the destruction of all ballots from the contentious election, including over 9,000 alleged valid provisional ballots that were not counted. These ballots could have altered the outcome, potentially allowing Hamadeh to claim victory over Democrat Kris Mayes.

Wendy Rogers, a state senator, revealed that one of the destroyed ballots belonged to her husband. Legal findings during Hamadeh’s election challenge indicated that these provisional ballots were cast due to issues within the state’s voter registration system. The counties failed to recognize the uncounted ballots, attributing the oversight to delayed responses to Hamadeh’s legal team and a prolonged judicial process.

The subsequent statewide recount, announced in December 2022, reduced Mayes’ lead from over 500 votes to fewer than 300, primarily due to significant errors in ballot counting in Pinal County. Reports indicated that nearly 400 votes for Hamadeh and about 100 for Mayes were overlooked due to “human error.”

Despite the controversy, about 70 percent of Election Day votes reportedly favored Hamadeh. This week, he took to social media, claiming that Democrats had “stolen” the attorney general’s race and insisted that the destruction of 9,000 ballots was part of this alleged theft.

Countering Hamadeh’s assertions, Garrett Archer, a data and elections reporter for ABC 15 Arizona, criticized him as “unserious,” suggesting that his claims stem from an emotional rather than rational response. Archer questioned the integrity of such assertions, pointing out that dismissing critical inquiry for emotional reactions reflects poorly on public discourse.

In Hamadeh’s legal challenge, his representatives argued that Maricopa County included numerous invalid early ballots for Mayes, further complicating the already contentious election narrative. Just before the November deadline for ballot destruction, the Arizona Supreme Court dismissed Hamadeh’s challenge to the election results.

Concerns regarding voter disenfranchisement have lingered since the 2022 election. During her tenure as Secretary of State, Governor Katie Hobbs acknowledged errors affecting approximately 6,000 Arizonans, who were mistakenly registered as federal-only voters. In a follow-up report released in November 2023, Hobbs identified potential disenfranchisement linked to systemic voter registration issues.