Judge Dismisses 8, Allows 2 of Kari Lake’s Election Claims to Go to Trial

An Arizona judge dismissed eight of 10 misconduct claims in Republican Kari Lake’s election lawsuit — but allowed two of them to go to trial. 

The Claims: One of the claims moving forward involves ballot printers; the judge limited the case to three questions: whether a Maricopa County employee tampered with printers, whether the interference caused Lake to lose votes, and whether lost votes impacted the election result. The other claim alleges that the county’s ballot contractor failed to follow the county election manual’s chain of custody rules. Dismissed allegations included freedom of speech violations, invalid signatures in mail-in ballots, and incorrect certification. 

For Context: The certified result of Arizona’s gubernatorial race was a close 50.3% to 49.7%, with about 17,000 more Arizonans supporting Governor-elect Katie Hobbs (D) than Lake. Lake, who had previously supported former President Donald Trump’s unfounded 2020 election fraud claims, filed a lawsuit alleging election misconduct had impacted this year’s election. 

How the Media Covered It: While some headlines focused on the eight rejected claims, headlines in right-rated outlets tended to focus solely on the two which were allowed to move forward. Lake herself continues to be a figure of controversy, especially after calling for the imprisonment of election officials on Sunday. While The New Republic (Left bias) named her the “Failed Coup Leader of the Year,” voices from the right have been mixed; coverage has generally been positive, but a National Review (Right bias) writer said she was “debasing herself.”