Arizona officials back off on full hand-count, OK audit

By ANITA SNOW
Associated Press

PHOENIX (AP) — The two Republicans on the three-member Cochise County Board of Supervisors in southeastern Arizona dropped their insistence for a full hand-count of all ballots in the Nov. 8 election after county and state authorities warned Monday of legal repercussions. Supervisors Peggy Judd and Tom Crosby had proposed the hand-count alongside the machine count but ultimately joined the board’s sole Democrat in voting against it. They were under pressure from voters who believe false claims of fraud in 2020. The board later voted 2-1 for a hand-count audit in all precincts, which the county attorney also called unlawful.