Election deniers are running to control voting. Here's how they've fared so far

Election officials and democracy experts are sounding the alarm, as Republicans who deny the 2020 election results have now moved closer to overseeing the voting process in five different states.

Arizona could become No. 6 on Tuesday, when GOP voters there will decide in that state's primary whether they want to nominate one of the two election deniers running for secretary of state.

"These are the people who set the rules, who count the votes, and ultimately who are responsible for defending the will of the people," said Joanna Lydgate, the CEO of States United Action, a nonpartisan organization that has been tracking election-denying candidates running for governor, attorney general and secretary of state nationwide. States United shared its most recent findings exclusively with NPR ahead of their release.

"In 2020, when we had a sitting president try to overturn an election, we saw all across the country state and local officials who stood up and who protected our freedom to vote," Lydgate said. "So if we want to see that happen again in the future we have to make sure that we are putting people in these positions who believe in free and fair elections."

The duties of a state secretary of state vary, but in most cases, they are the state's top voting official and have a key role in carrying out election laws.