Two members of the Arizona House of Representatives withdrew their bids for re-election after challenges to their ballot petition signatures.
Rep. Austin Smith, R-Wittmann, withdrew his candidacy for the House in Legislative District 29 on Thursday after he was accused of forging signatures.
In a written statement, Smith said the lawsuit filed against him is “silly on its face” and that he withdrew from the race to protect his family from the litigation costs that would follow if he defended his signatures.
“I might be confident of victory, but all it would take is a judge believing any one person, and all would be lost,” Smith said. “I recently got married to an amazing woman, and we’re just starting our life together. We have our plans and aspirations, and none of them involve starting out tens of thousands of dollars in debt as a price of being involved in public service. Even if I won, I would have to pay those debts.”
The complaint against Smith was filed by James Ashurst, a voter in LD29 and a board member of the LD29 Democratic precinct committee.
Ashurst accused Smith of forging at least two signatures from voters who say they never signed his petition.
The complaint also states that many of the signatures in Smith’s petition “bear a striking resemblance to Smith’s.”
Maricopa County Recorder Stephen Richer wrote in a post on X Thursday that the county will issue a report that confirms the validity of signatures at no expense to a defendant of a ballot petition challenge if the signatures are valid.
“The defendant can just point to that. $0,” Richer wrote.
A Secretary of State’s Office spokesman confirmed the allegations against Smith have been referred to the attorney general’s office on suspicion of forgery.
Smith, a Freedom Caucus Republican and former director of the conservative advocacy group Turning Point Action, has been one of the most vocal critics in the legislature of recent elections administered in Maricopa County.
He lists election integrity as one of his main issues on his campaign website and called the 2020 election in Maricopa County a “national disgrace and embarrassment.”
Maricopa County Supervisor Clint Hickman, a Republican whose district includes LD29 in his district, called for Smith to resign from the Legislature.
“This is a man who has lied to the people of Legislative District 29 and the entire state about our election operations for at least three years,” Hickman said. “An investigation will reveal the truth, but this episode tells us something about those who have spread falsehoods with such ease since the 2020 Election. They can’t comprehend that most Americans and Arizonans are honest people. They accuse others of dishonesty so easily because they have no qualms about lying to win a political race or a business deal.”
Following Smith’s withdrawal of candidacy, Republican James Taylor announced he’s running for the write-in nomination for a House seat in LD29, with endorsements from Smith, Rep. Steve Montenegro, R-Goodyear; and Sen. Janae Shamp, R-Surprise.
“With our party holding just a one-seat majority in the State House, LD29 Republicans need to focus on getting the job done between now and the July 30th Primary,” Taylor said in a news release.
On Monday, Rep.
Melody Hernandez , D-Tempe, withdrew her candidacy after a complaint was filed against her ballot petition signatures by David Alger, a voter in Legislative District 8 and a failed candidate in the Legislative District 5 2020 House race.
In a written statement on Monday, Hernandez said she was stepping down from the race to take responsibility for mistakes she made impacting her ability to successfully run for election.
“I’ve never shied away from being held accountable,” she said in the statement. “I knew the only right next step would be to take sole responsibility and to allow someone else to now step forward and lead.”
Alger’s complaint alleges Hernandez failed to submit 405 valid signatures she needed to qualify for the ballot and isn’t eligible to seek public office under state law due to racking up more than $1,000 in campaign fines.
As of Thursday, Hernandez ‘s campaign owes $2,100 for being 93 days late in failing to submit her 2023 cumulative report that was due on Jan. 16. Her campaign also owes an additional $30 for not submitting a 2024 Quarter 1 report that was due on April 15.
Hours after Hernandez’s announcement, Democratic activist and former Tempe City Councilwoman Lauren Kuby announced she is running as a write-in candidate for state Senate. She will need 405 votes in the primary election, the same number as the signature threshold, to advance to the general election.
The Arizona Independent Redistricting Commission lists LD29 as a safe Republican district and LD8 as a safe Democratic district, with vote spreads leaning 13.3% for Republicans in LD29 and 27.5% toward Democrats in LD8.
Copyright © 2024 BridgeTower Media. All Rights Reserved.
Most Popular
Comments / 0