Maricopa County Superior Court Judge Peter Thompson has delivered a decisive blow to Kari Lake’s legal challenge concerning her defeat in the 2022 governor’s race. The judge found that Lake’s team failed to present substantial evidence to support their allegations of mishandled signature verifications for early ballots in Maricopa County.
In his ruling, Judge Thompson emphasized the absence of clear and convincing evidence or a preponderance of evidence to establish misconduct or violations of the law that would justify overturning the election results. Consequently, the court confirmed the election of Democrat Katie Hobbs as Arizona’s governor, effectively closing the door on any further legal avenues for Lake and her team.
This verdict deals with a significant setback to Lake’s aspirations and narrows the possibilities for challenging the outcome of the race. With the judge’s decision affirming Hobbs’ victory, it becomes increasingly unlikely that Lake will be able to mount additional legal challenges to contest the election results.
According to the Daily Wire:
The court did not find “clear and convincing evidence or a preponderance of evidence” of misconduct in violation of the law and sufficient to overturn the results of the contest, wrote Maricopa County Superior Court Judge Peter Thompson.
Thompson’s ruling also contained an order that said it was “confirming” the election of Democrat Katie Hobbs as the governor.
A former journalist who made election integrity a top priority of her campaign, Lake sued after the results showed that she lost the November contest to Hobbs by roughly 17,000 votes in the governor’s race. Hobbs was sworn in as governor in early January, and in the months since the November election, media reports have said Lake is mulling a Senate bid and former President Donald Trump is considering her as a possible vice presidential running mate.
Lake’s 2022 election complaint raised allegations of misconduct and illegal votes with issues ranging from mail-in ballots, chain-of-custody, and problematic ballot printers. In March, Arizona’s Supreme Court sent the last-remaining claim regarding signature verification back to the trial court, where Thompson previously threw out Lake’s challenge.
Maricopa County officials have acknowledged issues with the 2022 election but insisted every valid vote in the contest had been counted.
Maricopa County Superior Court Judge Peter Thompson rejected Kari Lake’s final legal challenge to her 2022 governor’s race defeat. Insufficient evidence of misconduct in signature verifications are the reasons listed by Judge Thompson, which led to the confirmation of Democrat Katie Hobbs as governor. Lake’s allegations were raised during the trial regarding quick signature reviews and potential election issues, but the court found no basis to overturn the results. This ruling deals a significant setback to Lake’s claims, limiting the possibilities for further legal recourse.
