Thread by @maricopacounty

Maricopa County refutes lies about election audit in letter to @fannkfann. Bottom line:
-NO deleted files
-NO chain of custody issues
-We provided what they asked for except for routers, for security reasons
-“Auditors” trouble locating info we provided is THEIR problem

Thread:

Files: @ArizonaAudit falsely claimed that files were deleted from a County server. Here’s the truth. When the server was shut down on 4/12/20 for delivery to the Senate, the metadata on the files updated to the dates of the shutdown. Nothing was deleted. maricopa.gov/DocumentCenter…

From the Board’s letter to Senator Fann: “The failure of the Senate’s so-called ‘auditors’ to locate files on a copy they made of the County’s server speaks more to their ineptitude than it does to the integrity of our dedicated employees…”

Chain of custody: We are stunned that this is even a question. Senate liaison Ken Bennett signed documentation demonstrating chain of custody.

Seals: The questions regarding ballot box sealing further illustrate a lack of election law knowledge. Pursuant to AZ law the bags in which Election Day ballots are stored are sealed. And when they are transferred to long-term storage, the original seals are kept in the boxes.

Batch dividers: It is @maricopavote’s practice to divide batches of ballots using the slip logs, but no law requires the Elections Department to do that. Our above standard organizational practices are not to blame for the “audit” being ~1.5 million ballots behind schedule.

Boxes sealed with tape: Election Day ballots are stored with tamper-evident tape, as are batches in the hand count to ensure security when transported outside of the secure vault. When stored in our vault long-term, boxes are sealed w/standard clear sturdy tape, per state statute

Batch # slips: The difference in “pink-slip batch numbers” is because the # on the slips counts ballots sent to the tabulation center. Ballots that can't be read by tabulation equipment are pulled for adjudication. This is why the # of ballots in the box may differ from the slip.

In the case of slips that indicated fewer ballots than “auditors” found in the boxes- We examined Daily Tabulator Log slips for several batches and verified #’s are correct.
Review the technical report here: maricopa.gov/DocumentCenter…

Find more detailed responses to all claims and false accusations brought forth by the Arizona Senate in the Board’s letter to @FannKFann:
maricopa.gov/DocumentCenter…