President Donald Trump’s campaign announced Tuesday that the Arizona Legislature would hold a public hearing on Nov. 30 about the election, but legislative leaders said they had not authorized any such meeting.
The campaign touted the hearing as one of three in battleground states where it is disputing Trump’s defeat.
It was reportedly scheduled for the same day officials are set to certify Arizona’s election results. But the campaign did not offer any details, such as the time of the hearing or the name of the legislative committee that will convene.
“News to me,” Senate President Karen Fann, R-Prescott, replied when asked about plans for a hearing.
The Legislature’s calendar for Monday is currently blank, and a spokesman for Fann’s office confirmed she had not authorized any such meeting.
Over in the House of Representatives, a spokesman for Speaker Rusty Bowers, R-Mesa, said he had not authorized a hearing, either.
Still, the Trump campaign seemed certain there would be a hearing.
“We are pleased that the state Legislatures in Pennsylvania, Arizona and Michigan will be convening hearings to examine the November 3rd presidential election,” campaign senior legal advisor Jenna Ellis said in a statement, claiming to have proof of fraud in unspecified states but not offering any proof.
While legislators might wish to question Secretary of State’s Office staff members if they had concerns about the election, a spokesperson for the office said Tuesday she was not aware of any hearing.
The campaign’s statement also didn’t seem to ring any bells in the governor’s office. A spokesperson for Gov. Doug Ducey said he was unaware of a hearing.
Ducey said earlier in the day that Democratic nominee and President-elect Joe Biden had won Arizona – his first time acknowledging Trump’s defeat here – and said he had trust in the state’s election system.
The governor said less than a week ago he would accept the results only after all election-related lawsuits were resolved.
Courts have since tossed out the last of four election-related legal challenges in the state.
And the entirely Republican board of supervisors in Mohave County voted unanimously to certify its election results Monday, making it the last county in Arizona to do so, clearing the way for Secretary of State Katie Hobbs to finalize results Nov. 30.
Contact Andrew Oxford at andrew.oxford@arizonarepublic.com or on Twitter at @andrewboxford.
Source Article from https://www.azcentral.com/story/news/politics/arizona/2020/11/24/trump-campaign-announces-public-hearing-arizona-but-lawmakers-say-none-planned/6416716002/
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