Republican Governor Doug Ducey officially certified Arizona's election results on Monday, prompting backlash from Trump supporters and the President himself.
Why is he rushing to put a Democrat in office, especially when so many horrible things concerning voter fraud are being revealed at the hearing going on right now. @OANN What is going on with @dougducey? Republicans will long remember! https://t.co/XILGaHcyw7
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) November 30, 2020
HE'LL GET BACK TO YOU Back in July, Gov. Ducey said he changed his White House ringtone to "Hail to The Chief" so he wouldn't miss a call from Trump/Pence. Guess who called while Ducey was certifying Arizona's election? (7 secs in) pic.twitter.com/bzBGpfSIDf
— Brahm Resnik (@brahmresnik) November 30, 2020
During the certification, Trump campaign attorneys were holding an emergency election integrity hearing in downtown Phoenix. During the hearing, witnesses detailed a series of irregular voting issues and potential fraud.
The American people are entitled to an honest and transparent election process.
— Ronna McDaniel (@GOPChairwoman) November 30, 2020
When monitors aren’t allowed to observe the handling of ballots, that is a MAJOR problem.
https://t.co/bRDTo3S1Yu
But according to Ducey, he was simply following Arizona election law -- which required him to certify results after all counties in the state certified their own votes.
"I’ve been pretty outspoken about Arizona’s election system, and bragged about it quite a bit, including in the Oval Office. And for good reason. We’ve been doing early voting since 1992. Arizona didn’t explore or experiment this year. We didn’t cancel election day voting as some pushed for — we weren’t going to disenfranchise any voter," Ducey tweeted. "In Arizona, we have some of the strongest election laws in the country, laws that prioritize accountability and clearly lay out procedures for conducting, canvassing, and even contesting the results of an election."
"We’ve got ID at the polls. We review EVERY signature (every single one) on early ballots — by hand — unlike other states that use computers. Prohibitions on ballot harvesting. Bipartisan poll observers. Clear deadlines, including no ballots allowed after Election Day," he continued. "The problems that exist in other states simply don’t apply here. I’ve also said all along, I’m going to follow the law. So here’s what the law says. It requires the Secretary of State, in the presence of the Governor and the Attorney General, to canvass the election on the fourth Monday following the general election. That was today. This can ONLY be delayed if counties DECLINE to certify their results. ALL 15 counties in Arizona — counties run by both parties — certified their results. The canvass of the election triggers a 5-day window for any elector to bring a credible challenge to the election results in court. If you want to contest the results, now is the time. Bring your challenges. That’s the law. I’ve sworn an oath to uphold it, and I take my responsibility seriously."
On Election Night and in the following days, Ducey repeatedly pushed back on premature calls that Biden had won the state.
I want to thank the voters of Arizona for having patience. I encourage media outlets, cable news and national pundits to do the same, and avoid the temptation to declare a winner until our Arizona election officials have finished their jobs. 1/3
— Doug Ducey (@dougducey) November 6, 2020
The final total shows Biden leading Trump by more than 10,000 votes.