Kari Lake Files Appeal In Dismissal Of Arizona Election Lawsuit

Arizona Republican gubernatorial candidate Kari Lake appealed a Maricopa County judge’s decision Tuesday to dismiss her lawsuit, which challenged her defeat against Democratic Governor-elect Katie Hobbs.

Lake filed a notice in Arizona Superior Court to contest two counts. These were heard in court during a two-day trial last Wednesday. Eight others were originally dismissed by Superior Court Judge Peter Thompson. Two counts of intentional misconduct stemming from malfunctioning printers and failure to comply with ballot chain of custody procedures were dismissed.

The Hill reported Lake’s filing said she would “seek direct review by the Arizona Supreme Court.”

Lake told former president Donald Trump’s adviser Steve Bannon on his “War Room” indicating that she intends to file her appeal within the week.

“I am standing up for the people of this state, the people who were done wrong on Election Day, and the millions of people who live outside of Maricopa County, whose vote was watered down by this bogus election in Maricopa County,” Lake said in an appearance on Stephen Bannon’s “War Room” podcast.

.@KariLake: “I am standing up for the people of this state. The people who were done wrong on Election Day and the millions of people who live outside of Maricopa County, whose vote was watered down by this bogus election in Maricopa County.” pic.twitter.com/sFHQCx9f9Y

— Kari Lake (@KariLake) December 27, 2022

Maricopa County, which includes the capital of Phoenix and is Arizona’s most populous county, had notable problems during the November 8 election, including printer and tabulation machine-related issues in at least 70 of the county’s 223 polling locations.

Lake claims that tabulator malfunctions occurred at 59% of county voting centers on Election Day.

Lake’s suit claimed thousands of Republican voters were disenfranchised, arguing “hundreds of thousands of illegal ballots infected the election in Maricopa County.”

Despite her claims, Lake was disqualified by the results.

Lake, a former journalist who prioritized election integrity as a candidate, filed her appeal after a judge issued a ruling earlier on Tuesday to deny sanctions against her brought by Hobbs for seeking to overturn the results of last month’s governor’s race.

Hobbs, Maricopa County, filed motions Monday sanctions against Lake and her attorneys, which may amount to nearly $700,000 in penalties to cover the attorneys’ fees and costs, according to an estimate from the AZ Law blog.

It could be used for charitable purposes. Marc Elias, who is well known as the lawyer who directed funding from Hillary Clinton’s 2016 presidential campaign and Democratic National Committee that went toward British ex-spy Christopher Steele’s now-discredited anti-Trump dossier.

The judge explained that his dismissal of Lake’s case does not equate to determining that Lake’s claims were “groundless and presented in bad faith.”

“Any legal decision must be based on the law and facts rather than subjective beliefs or partisan opinions, no matter how strongly held,” He added.

Hobbs, who is currently Arizona’s secretary of state, is set to be inaugurated as governor on January 5.

This report was contributed by Daniel Chaitin