72 people burned to death in England; a large corporation contributed to that; they also contributed to the Republican Governors Association (RGA)

Wonder if the RGA will ever return its blood money.

Not gonna hold my breath while waiting for that to happen. :)

From CBSNews (emphasis added by me) -

Grenfell Tower fire inquiry says U.S. company Arconic "deliberately concealed" dangers of building materials

The public inquiry into the deadly 2017 fire that engulfed Grenfell Tower, a high-rise public housing apartment building in central London, published its final report Wednesday on the disaster that killed 72 people. The blaze — London's deadliest since World War II — was blamed on a litany of failures, from shoddy construction and materials to poor local management and inadequate fire safety standards.

Retired judge Martin Moore-Bick, who headed the inquiry, said all the deaths were avoidable, and that while no single cause could be blamed for the disaster, a number of factors and entities "contributed to it in one way or another, in most cases through incompetence, but in some cases through dishonesty and greed."

[snip]

In a statement to CBS News on Wednesday, Arconic said it rejected "any claim that AAP [Arconic's subsidiary, Arconic Architectural Products SAS] sold an unsafe product," and insisted it had "regularly conducted tests of its materials using third-party testing bodies."

From the website of the Federal Election Commission (FEC) -

I went looking through FEC records for a direct tie/donation from their PAC to an AZ candidate and didn't find one though there was one tie between AZ and the RGA when Arconic donated to the RGA.

Arconic gave money to the RGA in 2022.

Know who was co-chair of the RGA in 2022?

Former AZ governor Doug Ducey.

In 2022, the RGA spent a LOT of money in efforts to defeat Katie Hobbs.

It didn't work, but it seems some the money spent qualifies as "Ill Gotten Gains."

Legislative schedule - week starting 6/23/2024

The AZ Legislature has passed a balanced budget* and adjourned sine die, and Gov. Hobbs signed the budget package into law.

* = Sort of.  They used some earmarked funds, monies that were earmarked for one purpose but taken by the legislature and used for a different purpose.  As some folks objected and sued over that, the "balanced" part will depend on the outcome of that court case.

The creative reuse of those funds has been blocked, pending that case.

From AZ Mirror, written by Jim Small -

Judge blocks use of opioid settlement money to balance Arizona’s budget deficit

A judge on Thursday blocked the transfer of $115 million from the state’s share of the national opioid settlement that legislators approved less than a week ago as a key component of balancing a nearly $1.4 billion budget deficit.

The court stepped in after Attorney General Kris Mayes, who was sharply critical of the proposed transfer when it emerged late last week and said it would violate the terms of the settlement, filed a lawsuit earlier in the day and asked for a judge to take emergency action.

[snip]

Late Thursday, Maricopa County Superior Court Commissioner Mary Cronin agreed that Mayes was likely to win her lawsuit and issued a temporary restraining order, blocking the transfer. The restraining order will stay in place until July 5. On June 27, Mayes and the Hobbs administration will have a hearing in front of Judge Scott Minder to discuss the underlying lawsuit.

The case in question is CV2024-016033

In short, depending on the ruling in the case, the legislature may have to return to the Capitol to balance the budget .

But without stealing money.

One thing I expect that they won't do:  rein in the budget busting school voucher grift.

Right now, there isn't much on tap at the Capitol.

Monday, 6/24 thru Thursday, 6/27 - Nada

Friday, 6/28 

-

Joint Legislative Ad Hoc Study Committee on Water Security meets at 1 p.m. in HHR1.  On the agenda: a raft of industry presentations saying basically the same thing - any water conservation measures will reduce their short term profits.

AZ finally repeals total abortion ban. But thanks to the AZ Supreme Court, it will go into effect anyway.

Unless they update their ruling.

From AZ Mirror, written by Gloria Rebecca Gomez -

The 1864 abortion law is officially repealed, but when it takes effect remains uncertain

With a stroke of a pen on Thursday, Gov. Katie Hobbs struck down a 160-year-old near-total abortion ban. 

Just a day earlier, Democrats in the state Senate succeeded in peeling away enough Republican votes to repeal an abortion ban first passed in 1864, while Arizona was still a territory. The push to repeal it came after the state Supreme Court ruled it was once again enforceable, and Hobbs’ signature ended weeks of turmoil as the Republican-majority legislature grappled with the political fallout. 

[snip]

But while Hobbs’ approval removes that threat from state law, she noted that access to abortion   is still not guaranteed. With the repeal of the 1864 law, a 2022 law banning abortions after 15 weeks takes precedence. 

[snip]

And while the repeal of the 1864 law is now finalized, it won’t be effective until months after the state Supreme Court ruled it can be enforced on June 27. That’s because bills signed by the governor don’t go into effect until 90 days after the end of the legislative session, and with the state budget still being negotiated, that likely won’t happen for several more weeks yet, pushing the repeal’s effectiveness date into the fall at the earliest. 

[snip]

In response to the conflicting timelines, Democrats and abortion advocacy groups have sought to use legal maneuvers to delay the reimplementation of the 1864 law until the repeal can go into effect. Earlier this week, one day before the repeal was successful, Arizona Attorney General Kris Mayes filed a motion with the state Supreme Court requesting a 90-day reprieve while her office explored the possibility of appealing the ruling to the U.S. Supreme Court. 

The repeal passed the legislature with the votes of all Democratic members and five Republicans voting for it.

My basic cynicism may show with this, but I truly believe that the Rs who voted for the repeal drew the short straws and engaged in the political equivalent of "taking one for the team."

The original ruling by the AZ Supes that started this drama is here.

Gov. Hobbs keeps a campaign promise, Rabid anti-choicers do the expected and wig out.

Well, "expected" if you've ever observed anti-choicers,  and I have.

From KTAR, written by Danny Shapiro -

Arizona Gov. Hobbs signs executive order stripping county attorneys from prosecuting abortions

Arizona Gov. Katie Hobbs on Friday announced she signed an executive order that strips the state’s 15 county attorneys from prosecuting abortion cases.

The order, dated Thursday, gives the prosecutorial authority on the issue solely to the attorney general, who is currently Democrat General Kris Mayes.

[snip]

“I made a promise to Arizonans that I would do everything in my power to protect reproductive freedom and this executive order reflects that promise,” Hobbs said in a statement.

“I will not allow extreme and out of touch politicians to get in the way of the fundamental right Arizonans have to make decisions about their own bodies and futures.”

Most of the reaction from anti-choicers was characterized by the stamping of feet while whining "but she can't do that!"

From Twitter -

To anti-choicers, facts are bothersome things, to be ignored when they don't comport with anti-choice ideology.

Also from Twitter -

Herrod is the leader of Center for Arizona Policy and the leading anti-choicer in Arizona. And she's so influential with the R caucus of the legislature, she should be considered to be a de facto, but unelected, member of the the lege.

While their opposition to Hobbs' executive order is vehement, it isn't surprising.  On the other hand, I do have a question about something that comes next, from Rep. Alexander Kolodin.

Not this one, though the retweet of a call for impeachment over this is, well, *interesting.*

Nope, another one by Kolodin raises a question, for me anyway.

Even before he was a member of the state legislator, Kolodin was an attorney, and represented state Sen. Kern (not a senator then) in a lawsuit in Yuma County Superior Court over his involvement in the attempt to overturn the results of the 2020 election that happened on January 6, 2021.  The lawsuit didn't end well for Kolodin and Kern.

I know that privileged communication exists between attorneys and their clients, but I have to ask:

Does Kolodin offering a legal opinion ("unconstitutional") and giving some advice to his client ("you all in the Senate better keep up") obviate that privilege (I really don't know)?

Does Kari Lake drive a car or a whaaaaambulance?

She loses in elections and in court...and then whines about both.

From Howard Fischer of Capitol Media Services, published by the Arizona Capitol Times -

Lake says she will appeal judge’s ruling confirming she lost election

Kari Lake said Tuesday she will appeal Monday’s ruling confirming the election of Katie Hobbs as governor, brushing aside the fact that the judge said her key evidence in seeking to overturn the result was legally irrelevant.

In a press conference outside her Phoenix headquarters, Lake said she has been denied the ability to put on a case showing she actually won the race. She said that is because of the rulings about state elections laws from Maricopa County Superior Court Judge Peter Thompson all the way up through the Arizona Supreme Court about what she needed to prove.

All of them went against her.

State Sen. Sonny Borrelli declares his intent to be AZ's dictator

From K,JZZ written by Ben Giles -

Borrelli ordered AZ counties to stop using voting machines. Here's why he can't

Citing authority he does not actually have, a state senator has ordered all Arizona counties to conduct future federal elections without the use of electronic voting equipment.

In identical letters to all 15 counties, Republican Sen. Sonny Borrelli claims that the continued use of voting systems — “which are made with components from countries considered adversaries to the U.S.,” he wrote — has left Arizona, and the rest of the nation, “in an extremely vulnerable and dangerous position.”

Guess that Gov. Katie Hobbs has her first 2026 challenger.

Of course, Borrelli could be mounting a dark horse campaign to be Cheeto's VP selection.

Arizona Legislature 2023: Guessing that Governor Hobbs will need multiple veto pens

On tap at the legislature: More helping corporations, more ignoring the will of the voters, and more efforts to undermine democracy...and trying to distract from those things with culture war fights.

The "helping corporations" part?  

Rep. Livingston has introduced HB2003, a proposal to reduce the corporate income tax rate by almost 50%..  This measure is already scheduled for consideration by two committees this week.

The 'ignoring the will of the voters" part?

Livingston has also introduced HB2014, a proposal to expand tax credits for school vouchers, and also expand vouchers themselves.  In 2018, the voters soundly rejected Proposition 305, a attempt by the legislature to expand vouchers.

The "undermine democracy" part?

Sen. Kern has introduced SCR1002, a proposed amendment to the state constitution to require that any changes to it would require the votes of 60% of voters in an election to pass.

The "culture war fights" part?

The ever-reliable Sen. John Kavanagh (R-Demonize) has introduced SB1026, while Kern (who seems obsessed) has introduced SB1028 and SB1030; all of which would redefine, regulate, or otherwise restrict drag shows.

Others of note:

Kern has introduced SB1031, seeking to bar the state or other political subdivisions from firing employees based on their vaccination status.

Kavanagh has been busy - he's introduced SB1024, which would criminalize homelessness; SB1022, which would criminalize begging, asking for donations, and/or selling goods from inside a traffic median; SB1023, which would criminalize picketing or demonstrating outside a private residence; and SB1021, requiring the state's AG to defend all laws passed by the legislature and signed by the governor unless each chamber's judiciary committee grants relief from that requirement by a 2/3 vote (not gonna happen).

The way this is worded it covers measures passed by previous iterations of the lege and signed by previous governors.  And Governors Ducey and Brewer signed a LOT of bad bills.

Governor Hobbs doesn't needed unsolicited advice from a rank amateur like me, but I'm going to offer some anyway (of course :) ).

Her default position on any measures proposed by a legislative R should be "Veto It!"

Not every such measure will be bad, but her first question when considering any measure her desk should be "does this help Arizona?"

For most of the output of this legislature, the answer will be No!"

Hobbs takes the reins as AZ governor. That works.

From AP via Yahoo! -

Democrat Katie Hobbs takes office as Arizona governor

Katie Hobbs took the oath of office Monday to become Arizona’s 24th governor and the first Democrat to hold the office since 2009.

Hobbs was sworn in during a private ceremony at the state Capitol as she formally took over from Republican Doug Ducey. A public inauguration for the governor and others taking statewide offices is scheduled for Thursday.

From KTAR

AZ political predictions

 This is completely tongue-in-cheek (except for the parts that come true).  And mostly lege-oriented. :)

January -

Governor Katie Hobbs takes her oath of office with a speech filled with words and phrases like "cooperation" and "best interests of Arizona".

The Rs in the AZ legislature, led by House Speaker Ben Toma and Senate President Warren Petersen, respond with only "wanna bet?"

In one of her first acts as governor, Hobbs calls the legislature into a special session to address the aggregate expenditure limit looming over public ed.

The measure fails on a party line vote as the Rs in the legislature are upset it doesn't give more money to vouchers.

Kari Lake sues to overturn the 2022 election results.  She is represented by a reasonably reputable attorney.

Her lawsuit fails.

Kelli Ward is deposed as chair of the AZGOP.  Guess losing an election or two bothers R PCs more than being a party to treason.

February -

There's a riot in a bingo hall in Oro Valley when a caller refuses to award a Bingo designation to someone who doesn't have one.  Mark Finchem says he wasn't there, but photographic evidence says otherwise.

Abe Hamedeh sues again to overturn the 2022 results.

The lawsuit fails.

March - 

Sen. John Kavanagh runs a bill allowing police officers to kill anyone they want for any reason they want.....so long as they don't kill rich people or white trumpkins.

It passes the legislature on a party line vote.  

Governor Hobbs vetoes it.

Cheeto appears at a rally in Cochise County.  It's well attended.  He and his hangers-on inflate the figures anyway.

Kari Lake sues to overturn the 2022 election results.  She is represented by a reasonably astute attorney who waits until the retainer check clears before going forward.

Her lawsuit fails.

April -

Sen. Wendy Rogers runs a bill changing voting eligibility so that only retired Christian Dominionists living in counties with fewer than 500,000 people in them can vote.

It passes the legislature on a party line vote.  Governor Hobbs vetoes it.

With that, Hobbs sets the record for number of measures vetoed by a governor.

Incensed by the veto, Rogers runs a proposal to change the state constitution.  If passed by the voters, it would bar governors from vetoing measures supported by Republicans.

It passes the legislature on a party line vote.

Changing things up, Kari Lake sues to overturn the 2020 election results.  She is represented by a reasonably reputable attorney.

Her lawsuit fails.

May -

The lege has entered it's silly season, aka - hurry up and wait season, aka2 - there's no budget but the lege is still in session.  And their boredom, and contempt for democracy, shows.

Rep. Leo Biasucci runs a bill barring Attorneys General from indicting or charging Republicans.

It passes the legislature on a party line vote.  Governor Hobbs vetoes it

Sen. Sonny Borrelli runs a bill barring Arizona SOS' from certifying any election results that the majority in the lege doesn't like.

It passes the legislature on a party line vote.  Governor Hobbs vetoes it.

Abe Hamedeh sues again.

And fails again.

June -

The lege, in the persons of Toma and Petersen, announces that budget deal has been reached and that it solves the aggregate expenditure limit issue.

By taking all of the state's education funding and giving it to private and charter schools.

And then they adjourn the lege sine die and get out of town before Hobbs, or anyone else, can say anything.

Governor Hobbs addresses that by using her line item veto power and calling back the lege into a special session.

When certain legislators make noises about not returning to Phoenix, Hobbs makes noise about sending DPS officers to retrieve them.

Since being in Phoenix in the summer beats being in a jail cell, the recalcitrant legislators return.

July -

And the parade begins.

One of the downsides of Arizona becoming a battleground state will be incessant trips by famous (and not-so-famous) Republicans looking for the 2024 nomination for President (and if Joe Biden gives any indication that he's not running for re-election, it'll be Democrats, too).  2024 will start in 2023 here.

August -

The Biden Administration announces the release of a vaccine for cancer that's 99% effective, one that will be named after Anthony Fauci.

Rs and other anti-vaxxers denounce the vaccine as an unscientific plot by Big Brother to control their lives and proudly refuse to take it.

Cheeto tells them to drink Laetrile-laced Kool-Aid, and it will cure the cancer,.  He'll claim that it's more effective than hydroxychloroquine.

But first, they should send him some money

Cheeto's followers die in droves, but he gets wealthier.

September -

Kari Lake sues to overturn the 2022 election results.  She is represented by an attorney who obtained a law degree from a crane game in a convenience store.

Her lawsuit fails.

October -

Kelli Ward announces her candidacy for the U.S Senate seat that will be on AZ's ballot in 2024.

She wants the support of crazies and others of Cheeto's rubes to coalesce around her.

November -

Cheeto makes another appearance, this time in Mohave County. This one is sparsely attended.

The next day, he cries "Fraud!" and ends his candidacy.

December -

The Rs in the legislature, in preparation for an election year session in 2024, sharpen their pitchforks and pour kerosene on their stakes...errr..."prepare their book bans and anti-LBGTQ legislation".

Kari Lake sues to overturn the 2022 election results.  She is represented by an attorney who obtained a law degree from Trump University.

Her lawsuit fails.

Know what the two election-denying counties in AZ have in common? Republican former legislators in significant elected offices.

Not that there are any insignificant ones...though Katie Hobbs might argue that some are more significant than others. :)

Two Arizona counties, Cochise and Mohave, have proclaimed that they won't certify their election results until the last minute, if even then.

The two counties are located in diametrically opposite parts of the state, with Cochise being in the southeast corner of the state while Mohave is in the northwest corner. 

From the University of Arizona -

While the counties are in opposite parts of the state, they do share something in common....aside from being dusty and rural Republican strongholds.

In Cochise County, the elected Recorder is David Stevens, a former state representative.  He was in the lege from 2009 thru 2016.  He regularly earned failing grades from organizations like the Sierra Club and laudatory grades from organizations like the Goldwater Institute and the Arizona Small Business Association when there.  He also regularly sponsored or cosponsored a litany of anti-voter and anti-choice bills.

In Mohave County, one member of the board of supervisors there is Ron Gould, a former state senator, one who makes Attila the Hun look like a bleeding heart liberal.

To be sure, the election-denying extremism in Arizona isn't limited to *former* legislators:

Outgoing state senator Kelly Townsend has issued a baseless subpoena to Maricopa County over the 2022 election.

Returning state senator Ken Bennett was the face of the "fraudit."

Newby state representative Alexander Kolodin is an attorney who has not only represented Anthony Kern in a January 6th-related lawsuit, he's repping Cochise County in this matter.

While I expect the two counties to certify their election results (else the votes wouldn't count and a number of races would flip and become Democratic wins), I also expect that there will be a lot of self-righteous pearl clutching and foot stamping before that happens.

Lesson from Cheeto: An electoral loss isn't a loss, it's a chance to litigate

Kari Lake has absorbed that lesson at Cheeto's knee.

From The Hill, dated 11/17 -

Kari Lake declines to concede, says she’s assembling legal team

Arizona gubernatorial candidate Kari Lake (R) declined to concede governor race to Democrat Katie Hobbs Thursday, raising concerns about the election process.

The Associated Press and other outlets projected that Hobbs won the race on Monday. But Lake indicated she is assembling a legal team that is “collecting evidence and data” pertaining to the electoral process.

Not to worry; Lake may involve lawyers, but, like Cheeto, she'll never stop whining.

From the NY Times via The Seattle Times -

Kari Lake claims her voters were disenfranchised. Her voters tell a different story

 When he stepped inside a Phoenix polling place on the morning of Election Day on the way to work, Kevin Bembry was told that the tabulation machines were not functioning properly and he might want to vote somewhere else.

“I’ve never had that happen before,” Bembry, 57, a security officer, said in a

 

video later posted online.

[snip]

Lake has vowed to keep fighting the election after her race was called by

 

The Associated Press for her Democratic opponent, Katie Hobbs. Lake has claimed

 

her defeat was the result of the “disenfranchisement” of her supporters in

 

Maricopa County, which includes Phoenix and where technical problems on

 

Election Day introduced delays, confusion and conspiracy theories. On Twitter,

 

Lake’s campaign has claimed that the election was compromised and said that

 

“the appropriate thing to do would be to let Maricopa County cast their votes again.”

But a crucial element has been missing so far in all of these accounts: clear claims

 

that any eligible voters in Maricopa County were actually denied the chance to vote.

The video the campaign circulated of Bembry, for instance, was an edited version

 

of a longer video posted on the site Rumble. In the full video, he states that,

 

despite the inconvenience, he cast his ballot at a nearby polling site.

 

“I was able to vote — no waiting, no misreads of the tabulation machines, nothing,” he says.

From the website of the Arizona Secretary of State -

It's Hobbs for the win!

A week after the election, the race for AZ Governor has been called...for Katie Hobbs!

From AP -

Hobbs wins Arizona governor’s race, flipping state for Dems

Democrat Katie Hobbs was elected Arizona governor on Monday, 

defeating an ally of Donald Trump who falsely claimed the 2020

 election was rigged and refused to say she would accept the results

 of her race this year.

Hobbs, who is Arizona’s secretary of state, rose to prominence

as a staunch defender of the legitimacy of the last election and 

warned that her Republican rival, former television news anchor 

Kari Lake, would be an agent of chaos. Hobbs’ victory adds 

further evidence that Trump 

is weighing down his allies in a crucial battleground state as the 

former president gears up for an announcement of a 2024 presidential run.

She will succeed Republican Gov. Doug Ducey, who was prohibited 

by term limit laws from running again. She’s the first Democrat 

to be elected governor in Arizona since Janet Napolitano in 2006.

From the website of the Arizona Secretary of State -

The interesting part of that second pic is that Maricopa County, long considered a "red" county, voted very purple this time.  The people that saw Hobbs in action as both a member of the AZ Legislature and as AZ Secretary of State, accepted her, while the same people who saw Kari Lake up close as a TV personality on a Fox affiliate, rejected her.

As could be expected, Hobbs said "thank you" and got to work, while Lake, well, whined.

Lake campaign receives *suspicious" envelope early in the morning

From AZFamily -

Suspicious package delivered to Kari Lake’s Phoenix campaign office

A suspicious envelope was delivered to Kari Lake’s campaign office in Phoenix early Sunday morning.

Phoenix Fire Department’s hazardous materials crew responded to a report from the office that a suspicious envelope had arrived, Lake’s campaign confirmed. The crew and other local agencies started working together to investigate around 2 a.m. early Sunday morning. Phoenix police say there are no reports of injuries or illness.

[snip]

Secretary Katie Hobbs released the following statement when asked by Arizona’s Family.

“The reported incident at Kari Lake’s campaign office is incredibly concerning and I am thankful that she and her staff were not harmed. Political violence, threats, or intimidation have no place in our democracy. I strongly condemn this threatening behavior directed at Lake and her staff.”

Secretary Katie Hobbs

And readers thought I couldn't do it - nothing in the title speculated that this may be Lake's "Reichstag fire" moment, or pointed out that the envelope was delivered when the were few potential witnesses or that it came after Lake was heavily criticized for cracking a joke at the actual violence perpetrated upon Paul Pelosi, the husband of the speaker of the U.S. House.

Jeez, I'm so restrained that I amaze myself sometimes. :)

Kari Lake declares that MLK Jr. would be MAGA; the King family has a different opinion on the topic

 From The Recount -

[snip]

LAKE: “I'm a true believer that if MLK, Reverend Martin Luther King Jr. were alive today, if JFK were alive today, if our founding fathers were alive today, they would be America First Republicans. I really believe that.”

From The Daily Beast via Yahoo! -

MLK’s Daughter to Kari Lake: No, My Dad Wouldn’t Be a MAGA Republican

Kari Lake, a Republican who’s regularly spewed election-denying nonsense in her bid to be Arizona’s next governor, was eviscerated Wednesday after she claimed Martin Luther King Jr. would be a MAGA Republican if he was alive today.

A day after making the bizarre comment, Bernice King shot back that Lake was being dismissive of her father’s “seminal work and beliefs,” such as ending voter suppression and treating all people—including immigrants—with dignity.

Lake hates voting and elections, too - at least ones that don't go her preferred way.

The King family is on record as supporting voting rights and elections.

From Axios, dated 1/15/2022 -

King family leads Arizona rally to mobilize support for voting rights bills

Family members of Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. honored his birthday Saturday with a rally in Arizona to mobilize support for voting rights legislation.

Driving the news: The rally comes days after Martin Luther King III admonished Sen. Kyrsten Sinema (D-Ariz.) on Thursday, saying history will remember her "unkindly" for voicing her opposition to abolishing the filibuster to pass major voting rights bills.

Yes, I've already voted for Katie Hobbs.

Maybe the GQP can't multitask

It seems that they're not coordinated enough to both dance in joy over the anti-choice ruling to crow about it.

From AP via Yahoo! -

GOP quiet as Arizona Democrats condemn abortion ruling

Arizona Democrats vowed Saturday to fight for women's rights after a court reinstated a law first enacted during the Civil War that bans abortion in nearly all circumstances, looking to capitalize on an issue they hope will have a major impact on the midterm elections.

Republican candidates were silent a day after the ruling, which said the state can prosecute doctors and others who assist with an abortion unless it's necessary to save the mother's life. Kari Lake, the GOP candidate for governor, and Blake Masters, the Senate candidate, did not comment.

Don't worry - the GQP crowing will soon ensue.

David Gordon at Blog for Arizona has a summary of AZ Dem reaction to this abominable ruling by a Ducey-appointed judge here.

Think that Cheeto's acolytes will want people to honor elections that go the way the Cheeto's acolytes want?

I'm thinking yes.

But for elections that don't go their way?

The preemptive whining has already started.

From the New York Times via Yahoo! -

Echoing Trump, These Republicans Won't Promise to Accept 2022 Results

Nearly two years after President Donald Trump refused to accept his defeat in the 2020 election, some of his most loyal Republican acolytes might follow in his footsteps.

When asked, six Trump-backed Republican nominees for governor and the Senate in midterm battlegrounds would not commit to accepting this year’s election results, and another five Republicans ignored or declined to answer a question about embracing the November outcome. All of them, along with many other GOP candidates, have preemptively cast doubt on how their states count votes.

[snip]

Aides to several Republican nominees for governor who have questioned the 2020 election’s legitimacy did not respond to repeated requests for comment on their own races in November. Those candidates included Doug Mastriano of Pennsylvania, Kari Lake of Arizona, Tim Michels of Wisconsin and Dan Cox of Maryland.

Lake was asked in a radio interview this month whether she would concede a defeat to Katie Hobbs, her Democratic rival and Arizona’s secretary of state. “I’m not losing to Katie Hobbs,” Lake replied.

Hobbs’ spokesperson, Sarah Robinson, said her candidate “will accept the results of the election in November.”

[snip]

In Arizona — where Republicans spent months on a government-funded review of 2020 ballots that failed to show any evidence of fraud — Masters, the Trump-backed Republican nominee for Senate, baselessly predicted to supporters in July that even if he defeated Sen. Mark Kelly, the incumbent Democrat, enough votes would somehow be produced to flip the result.

“There’s always cheating, probably, in every election,” Masters said. “The question is, what’s the cheating capacity?”

A Masters aide, Katie Miller, sent the Times an August article in The Arizona Republic in which Masters said there was “evidence of incompetence” but not of fraud in the state’s primary election. Miller declined to say if Masters would respect the November results.

Kelly “has total trust in Arizona’s electoral process,” said a spokesperson, Sarah Guggenheimer.

Get ready for a bumpy ride - the election may be over on November 8th, but the need for cheese to go with that whine will go on for a while.  

A long while.