Arizona Officials Certify Midterm Election, GOP Still Intent On Challenging Results

Arizona officials certified the results of the state's midterm election on Monday, officially declaring winners in the highly contentious gubernatorial and senate races.

The certification process is typically a routine affair, but this election cycle involved unparalleled challenges from Republican candidates and activists. Several members of the Arizona Republican party pushed a meritless claim of printer malfunctions in the state's most populous county.

Arizona election officials have acknowledged minor mishaps but repeatedly insist no voters were disenfranchised. Regardless of the evidence, Republicans in the state continued to push the false narrative that eventually led to a delay in certifying the results.

Ultimately the election was finalized, taking place at an event closed to the public but broadcast live. Acting secretary of state Katie Hobbs, a Democrat who won this year's gubernatorial race, signed documents to officially certify the results in all 15 counties.

Joining Hobbs in the certification were departing Gov. Doug Ducey and Arizona's attorney general Mark Brnovich, who are both Republicans.

Ducey clung to his principles in his decision to certify the election, saying it was part of the democratic process.

"I swore an oath to uphold the law," said Ducey, moments before signing the documents.

Gov.-Elect Hobbs also took the time to address the unfounded conspiracy theories that had spread in the aftermath of the election, reassuring the security of the results.

"Powerful voices spread misinformation that threatened to disenfranchise voters," she said. "Democracy prevailed, but it's not out of the woods."

Kari Lake, the unsuccessful Republican gubernatorial candidate, ran her campaign with a heavy focus on election conspiracies. Despite losing by more than 17,000 votes, Lake and her allies have vowed to continue challenging the election results.

The Republican nominee for attorney general in Arizona has also left the door open for potential legal challenges to the election results.

Republican Abraham Hamadeh trails his opponent by around 500 votes in a race that has yet to be called. A recount is now scheduled for the race but this did not stop Hamadeh from prematurely requesting a judge to declare him the winner several weeks early.

This saga has made Arizona the epicenter of election-based conspiracies, drawing in activists and right-wing media figures alike, including former presidential advisor Steve Bannon, who has claimed for weeks that voters in Arizona have been disenfranchised. Bannon has provided no evidence for these claims.