Statement from Chairman Jack Sellers on Election Audit Agenda Item

Court rulings, hand counts, and other checks and balances proved Maricopa County elections were administered with integrity throughout 2020.  However, a significant number of voters want the additional assurance that a full forensic audit of election tabulation equipment might bring, especially given all the misinformation that spread following the November 3 General Election.  Tomorrow, the Board of Supervisors will vote on whether to move forward with such an audit.

The agenda item proposes hiring two independent, qualified firms to independently audit tabulation hardware and software in a way that protects private voter information and our investment in the machines.  It is my belief these audits will prove our machines were not vulnerable to hacking or vote switching. 

While I am confident in our staff and our equipment, not all our residents are.  This is a problem.  A democracy cannot survive if enough of its people doubt elections are free and fair.  Some will never be satisfied, but this vote is not about them.  The best we can do, in my opinion, is to err on the side of transparency, to embrace the opportunity to once again show our work, and to put facts in their proper place at the center of public discourse instead of the periphery.

I invite members of the public to watch tomorrow’s Board of Supervisors formal meeting at youtube.com/MaricopaCountyAZ.  The agenda for the meeting can be found here.