Thread by @weareoversight

NEW: Officials involved in the sham “audit” in Arizona said recently that they expected to announce results in the next few weeks.

We already know enough about the operation’s biased origins to call into question any purported “findings.” THREAD
americanoversight.org/how-the-arizon…

First, the background of the “audit.” Besides the complete lack of any evidence of widespread voter fraud in Arizona or elsewhere, an early signal of the audit’s untrustworthiness and bias was the hiring of the cybersecurity firm Cyber Ninjas to oversee the operation. 2/

Cyber Ninjas has no experience conducting election audits. Its CEO Doug Logan is a vocal supporter of the “Stop the Steal” movement who repeatedly circulated lies that the 2020 election had been rigged. 3/

Throughout the partisan ballot review, we’ve seen many examples of the consequences of this inexperience, including serious security issues, a deference to outlandish conspiracy theories, and error-prone methods. 4/
azsos.gov/about-office/m…

Through public records requests, we’ve obtained documents and emails that show that top officials began the process with predetermined conclusions; allowed the involvement of conspiracy theorists; and knew of potentially voter-intimidating actions undertaken by allies. 5/

Predetermined conclusions: Partisan actors and conspiracy theorists operating under the assumption that voter fraud occurred in Maricopa County and elsewhere have been involved at every stage of the process. 6/

Early communications reveal that Fann and others were in frequent contact with these individuals, and messages indicate that Fann was sympathetic to calls from both constituents and former President Trump himself for the election to be overturned because of alleged fraud. 7/

By selecting non-credible and biased contractors over experienced auditors who had also submitted bids, the state Senate sent a clear message that it believed accredited election authorities had been unable or unwilling to find fraud. 8/

Involvement of Conspiracy Theorists: While the operation’s funding has been largely shielded from the public, outside supporters have raised money for it, including OAN’s Christina Bobb and Trump ally Patrick Byrne, who produced a conspiracy theory film about the “audit.” 9/

Other conspiracy theorists, such as Jovan Hutton Pulitzer — who was reportedly behind the idea that ballots had been smuggled in from Asia, leading to workers’ hunt for bamboo fibers in the ballots — have been more directly involved in the recount. 10/

Canvassing Operations: The auditors’ stated plans to engage in door-knocking drew scrutiny early on. On May 5, the U.S. Department of Justice sent a letter to Fann, warning about potential violations of federal law. 11/

In mid-June, the Arizona Republic reported that people impersonating election officials were knocking on doors in Yavapai County and asking people about their 2020 vote. 12/
azcentral.com/story/news/pol…

Our investigation has uncovered records that point to top officials being aware of the occurrence of in-person canvassing, even if those door-to-door activities were not officially sanctioned by the Senate. 13/

https://twitter.com/weareoversight/status/1407799043665842184

All of this is significant enough reason to doubt the integrity of any purported findings that emerge at the conclusion of the AZ Senate’s stunt. But there’s still so much we don’t know, like how Cyber Ninjas was selected, how the “audit” is funded, & who all is involved. 14/

We’re seeking answers to these questions. That’s why we sued for records related to the “audit” in May. A Maricopa County Superior Court judge ruled on July 15 that the case’s “compelling public interest demand[ed] public disclosure and public scrutiny.”  15/

Read the full results of our investigation so far here:
americanoversight.org/how-the-arizon…