Republicans in the Arizona Legislature used their plenary authority on Monday, May 22, to ban the state from using electronic voting machines in any future federal elections, bypassing Democratic Gov. Katie Hobbs.
In a letter to all 15 county boards of supervisors in Arizona, State Senate Majority Leader Sonny Borrelli said the state legislature, through a resolution passed earlier this year, prohibits them from using "electronic voting systems" as the primary method of conducting federal elections until these systems meet certain criteria that the state's election systems currently do not meet. (Related: Everything Home: Michele Swinick renews call for probe on AZ corruption, election fraud – Brighteon.TV.)
The resolution in question is Senate Concurrent Resolution 1037, passed by House and Senate Republicans in March on party-line votes. The resolution declared that state lawmakers were seriously concerned about the security of electronic voting systems.
SCR 1037 noted that no electronic voting system could be used in the state as the primary way of "conducting, counting, tabulating or verifying" federal elections in the state unless the electronic voting systems in use "were made in the U.S. and accredited as prescribed by the U.S. Department of Defense." The resolution adds that the source codes of these electronic voting machines must be publicly available and certain data must also be published within 24 hours after polls close.
The Arizona Republicans' main argument is that, while SCR 1037 is non-binding, they can use its authority to override state law as a matter of national security. They cite a 2017 report from the Department of Homeland Security that deemed election infrastructure "critical" to the nation.
Paul Dragu, reporting on the issue for The New American, noted that all eyes will remain in Arizona for developments on this front, as he himself noted that election experts on the matter do not believe Arizona's Democratic officials holding the seats of power in the state will take this resolution lying down.
Arizona Democrats claim resolution has no power
Hobbs vetoed SCR 1037 when it reached her desk in April. She also vetoed an actual binding piece of legislation passed by both House and Senate Republicans which had similar language to SCR 1037, claiming that the bill "neither strengthens our democracy nor ensures that Arizonans can better exercise their fundamental right to vote." At the time, Borrelli strongly criticized the governor's veto, accusing her of playing blatant political games
Democratic Secretary of State Adrian Fontes denounced Arizona Republicans, claiming they are trying to exercise powers they do not have.
"Senate Concurrent Resolution 1037, which expresses a desire to restrict the use of certain electronic voting machines, is non-binding and does not have the force of law," said Fontes, who urged county leaders to proceed as normal and ignore SCR 1037. "If those requirements or certification processes were to be changed, it would require a regular bill to be passed by the legislature and signed by the governor – which is not the case for this non-binding resolution. We defer to the [Attorney General's] office on all other legal questions.
"The attorney general agrees with the secretary of state's legal assessment on the matter," said Richie Taylor, spokesperson for Democratic Attorney General Kris Mayes. "The SCR is non-binding and has no legal impact."
Christian Slater, spokesman for Hobbs, said Borrelli's assertions regarding the power behind SCR 1037 are "completely false" and his actions are "grossly irresponsible."
But Borrelli is not backing down, which means that the Arizona Republicans are likely going to fight state Democrats in a protracted legal battle over the power of SCR 1037.
But Arizona Republicans are prepared for this. Republican Sen. Wendy Rogers even said in an interview: "Fine, take us to court."
"This is we, the state legislature, again recovering our plenary authority to tell them this is the way it's going to be," she added. "This is a separation of powers issue."
Learn more about the threats to America's election security at VoteFraud.news.
Watch this episode of "The New American TV" as host Paul Dragu discusses the resolution of the Arizona Legislature that effectively bans voting machines.
This video is from the channel The New American on Brighteon.com.
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