Katie Hobbs urges Arizona court to sanction Kari Lake over election fraud claims

Arizona’s Democratic Gov.-elect Katie Hobbs and Maricopa County each urged a decide on Monday to sanction Republican Kari Lake over “unfounded assaults” in opposition to elections officers. 

The request for Arizona Superior Courtroom Choose Peter Thompson to order Lake to pay greater than $500,000 in authorized charges to Hobbs’ attorneys and Maricopa County got here lower than 48 hours after he dominated in opposition to Lake’s efforts to throw out licensed election ends in Arizona’s most populous county. 

The courtroom’s determination on Saturday cemented Hobbs’ victory over Lake within the state’s shut gubernatorial contest. Regardless of Lake’s defeat within the race by 17,000 votes, she has but to concede. 

“Sufficient actually is sufficient,” Maricopa County’s Monday submitting learn. “It’s previous time to finish unfounded assaults on elections and unwarranted accusations in opposition to elections officers. This matter was introduced with none authentic justification, not to mention a considerable one.”

The county additional accused Lake of making an attempt to “fundraise” off her efforts to overturn the election outcomes and utilizing the authorized system “to harass political opponents and sow fully unfounded doubts concerning the integrity of elections.”

“Earlier than a single vote was counted within the 2022 common election, Kari Lake publicly said that she would settle for the outcomes of the gubernatorial election provided that she had been the profitable candidate,” the county added within the submitting.

Maricopa County is searching for $25,050 to cowl its attorneys charges within the case. 

A separate sanctions movement filed by Hobbs on Monday seeks $550,210 in attorneys charges from Lake, with greater than $450,000 going to high Democratic lawyer Marc Elias’s legislation agency. 

Lake, a distinguished supporter of former President Donald Trump and a 2020 election denier, has vowed to take her case in opposition to Hobbs and Arizona all the way in which to the Supreme Courtroom.

The ten-page Christmas Eve ruling from Choose Thompson declared that there was no “clear and convincing” proof that any alleged misconduct impacted the results of the Nov. 8 election.