Race for Arizona

You are not signed in as a Premium user; you are viewing the free version of this program. Premium users have access to full-length programs with limited commercials and receive a 10% discount in the store! Sign up for only one day for the low cost of $1.99. Click the button below.

See All Plans

The Trump campaign is disputing the claim by Arizona's Democrat secretary of state that Joe Biden carried the state.

Certain key points have contributed to Arizona's electoral uncertainty:

• Arizona has gone red in every election cycle since 1952, with the exception of 1996
• Reliable polls a few days before the 2020 election had President Trump up by several points
• No media outlets other than the Associated Press and Fox News called Arizona until a week after the election
• It was the closest race in the nation, with many claims of voter irregularities
• Four major court cases have ensued after the election
• Despite the secretary of state's push to certify, the governor claims every court case must first be decided
• New controversy swirls over a machine error in Greenlee County

Several indicators have cast doubts on the state's election results.

Reliably Red

Arizona in presidential elections has been reliably red over many decades. With the exception of the Clinton-Dole race in 1996, Arizona has voted consistently Republican in every election cycle since 1952.

The Polls

Since Donald Trump beat Hillary Clinton in 2016 by more than three and a half points — and reliable polls indicated an advantage to the president before election day — Arizona was not a top priority for the Trump campaign.

A few days before the election, Rasmussen had Trump up by four percentage points while Trafalgar had him up by three. These two polls were among the very few that correctly pegged the results of the 2016 election.

Premature Projections

To the surprise of many, only Fox News and the Associated Press called Arizona for Biden on election night. The more actual counting took place, the less of a lead Biden maintained. Ironically, news outlets including CNN, MSNBC, CBS, ABC and NBC waited until around a week after the election to call it.

Razor-Slim Lead

With 100% of the votes in, unofficial poll results from Arizona have Joe Biden with a lead of three-tenths of one percentage point — a little over 10,000 votes. This was the closest race of all 50 states. Up for grabs are Arizona's 11 electoral votes, which could prove to be the difference in the election when all the dust settles.

Lawsuits

Lawsuits began to be filed even before the media began to call the state for Biden. There have been four major lawsuits in the state of Arizona, one of which is very recent.

First, the Trump campaign and voters of Maricopa County filed a suit Nov. 4 in the Superior Court of Arizona claiming Maricopa County incorrectly rejected some in-person votes on Election Day. This was due to Sharpie markers given to voters to use on their ballots.

The claimants said the ink seeped through the paper and ballots were consequently rejected by the machines. Election officials disputed this and said Sharpies were used since they dry fast and don't smear. On Nov. 7, Trump attorneys dropped the legal challenge without prejudice.

On Nov. 7, the Trump campaign, Republican National Committee and Arizona Republican Party filed a suit in Superior Court claiming Maricopa County incorrectly rejected in-person ballots when vote tabulation machines flagged some as being defective. Poll workers did not follow procedures to give voters a chance to correct mistakes, the claim stated.

The Trump campaign dropped this suit Nov. 12.

The Arizona Republican Party on Nov. 13 also filed a lawsuit in Superior Court to challenge a quality check of the voter machines. Maricopa County planned to hand-count votes according to newly established voting centers. The suit sought to have the county hand-count by precincts instead, allowing for a broader audit since there are many more precincts than voting centers. The suit was dismissed last week.

In the latest lawsuit, filed Tuesday by Arizona GOP Chairwoman Kelli Ward, she is seeking an inspection of both mail-in ballot signatures and duplicated ballots in metro Phoenix, alleging election officials didn't give legal observers enough access to ballot processing. It also claims legal observers were not allowed to witness the ballot duplication.

In a historic press conference Nov. 19, Trump campaign lead lawyer Rudy Giuliani did not go into detail but told the nation to expect a new lawsuit in Arizona.

Governor Holds Fast

Arizona governor Doug Ducey announced last week the state's election is not over until all court cases are settled.

"We can trust our elections here in Arizona," Ducey said at a news conference, but added, "There are questions, and those questions should be answered."

Now that most pending legal claims have been either dropped or dismissed, but with the Giuliani announcement looming in the background, it is not clear what will occur between now and the state's certification deadline Nov. 30.

In the latest news, Tom Fitton, president of Judicial Watch, tweeted Tuesday that there was a "ballot count upload error" discovered in Greenlee County that gave Biden over 6,000 false votes. Soon after, a local ABC affiliate tweeted that this makes Biden's lead only 4,202 votes. However, liberal Democrat Secretary of State Katie Hobbs tweeted it was the result of an uploading error that did not change the voting results. Many respondents commenting on her tweet expressed cynicism.

The Future

Its uncertain what may transpire between now and Dec. 14, when electors officially vote for president. One potential whistleblower could uncover massive fraud and convince an open-minded judge, thus changing the result of the election. Trump's legal team. along with Sidney Powell, may also uncover irrefutable evidence tied to Dominion Voting Systems, which was used in much of Arizona. If this goes all the way up to the Supreme Court, all bets are off.

However, time is ticking. Electors gather Dec. 14 to make the presidential election official. Inauguration Day is Jan. 20. Objective observers contend there is little chance Arizona will flip in time. Two other states would also have to flip in order to give the president four more years.

Many Catholics are relying on the intercession of the Blessed Mother — Our Lady of America. The United States has been consecrated more than once by U.S bishops to Mary under the title of the Immaculate Conception. Earlier this year, U.S. bishops reconsecrated the United States to her.

If we continue to pray, and if it be God's will for the betterment of souls, she will assert her powerful intercession as she did in Cana (John 2:5) and a miracle will happen.

Have a news tip? Submit news to our tip line.

We rely on you to support our news reporting. Please donate today.