Results are still pending in Arizona’s Republican gubernatorial primary, though former Fox 10 Phoenix anchor Kari Lake leads her opponent Karrin Taylor Robson. It is unclear when a winner could be declared.
Lake, backed by former President Donald J. Trump, holds a more than 11,300 vote lead over Robson with 80 percent reporting, the Associated Press election results compiled by the New York Times show. Lake has 294,260 votes versus Robson’s 282,936. In a tweet, Dave Wasserman of the Cook Report suggested Lake will come away with the nomination, though only one county is reporting more than 95 percent of its votes.
Trump-endorsed Kari Lake (R) has taken the lead over Gov. Ducey-backed Karrin Taylor Robson (R) by 11,324 votes (1.8 pts) in the #AZGOV GOP primary w/ more EDay ballots counted, and it doesn’t look like she’s giving it back.
— Dave Wasserman (@Redistrict) August 3, 2022
As of 2:45 p.m EST, the vote differential had not changed since Wasserman’s tweet at 8:49 a.m. EST, and the percentage of votes counted in each county was as follows:
- Apache: 69 percent
- Cochise: 95+ percent
- Coconino County: 88 percent
- Gila: 88 percent
- Graham: 83 percent
- Greenlee: 77 percent
- La Paz: 80 percent
- Maricopa: 81 percent
- Mohave County: 86 percent
- Navajo County: 82 percent
- Pima: 66 percent
- Pinal: 76 percent
- Santa Cruz: 82 percent
- Yavapai: 85 percent
- Yuma: 76 percent
On Wednesday morning, Maricopa County Recorder Stephen Richer tweeted that additional results from the county will be posted at 7:00 p.m. local time or 10:00 p.m. EST. He noted that some 130,000 early voting packets were scanned overnight until 6:00 a.m. local time, and a subsequent signature verification process was to take place soon after. From there, they would be sent to a “bipartisan processing team,” and whatever results are counted by day’s end will be posted this evening. “We will also be contacting all voters whose signature we deemed not-matching,” and voters will have five business days “to cure their signature[s].”
At 7:00 PM tonight, the County will post whatever we tabulate today.
We will also be contacting all voters whose signature we deemed not-matching.
Voters have 5 business days after Election Day to cure their signature.https://t.co/Dp6AA54q7t
— Stephen Richer—Maricopa Cnty Recorder (prsnl acct) (@stephen_richer) August 3, 2022
Moreover, ballot issues in Pinal County drew strong condemnation from national and local GOP leaders, as Breitbart News reported:
Following reports of at least 12 precincts having a shortage of ballots, RNC [Republican National Committee] Chairwoman Ronna McDaniel and RPAZ [Republican Party of Arizona] Chairwoman Kelli Ward released a joint statement demanding the Pinal County Elections Director, David Frisk, “immediately” resign for the “comprehensive failure” that “disenfranchises Arizonans.”
McDaniel’s and Ward’s statement reads:
During Arizona’s primary elections, the RNC and Republican Party of Arizona’s poll observer program documented and reported multiple failures by Pinal County’s Elections Administrator, including 63,000 mail-in ballots delivered to the wrong voters and multiple Republican-heavy precinct locations running out of ballots. This is a comprehensive failure that disenfranchises Arizonans and exemplifies why Republican-led efforts for transparency at the ballot box are so important. Pinal County Elections Director David Frisk should resign immediately.
“Due to unprecedented demand for in-person ballots, Pinal County has experienced a ballot shortage in certain, limited precincts,” a tweet from the county government page noted, adding that “additional ballots” were being printed and distributed to polling precincts short on ballots.
Due to unprecedented demand for in-person ballots, Pinal County has experienced a ballot shortage in certain, limited precincts. Pinal County is continuing to print additional ballots and distributing them to each affected precinct polling place.
— Pinal County – Government 🌵 (@PinalCounty) August 2, 2022