The Honorable Katie Hobbs
Governor of Arizona
1700 W. Washington St.
Phoenix, AZ 85007
via email
SB1342 – Request for Signature
Dear Governor Hobbs:
We write in support of Senate Bill 1342, which facilitates county participation in the statutorily required, routine post-election audit. SB1342 is an important step toward enhancing election verification and security by ensuring the completion of post-election audits throughout Arizona.
After the 2020 General Election, only 10 of the 15 Arizona counties were able to conduct the post-election audit because an insufficient number of audit board workers (hand count board members) were supplied by the party representatives. After the 2022 Midterm Election, 12 of the 15 counties conducted the post-election audit-which still left three counties unable to perform their audits due to inadequate staffing. SB1342 seeks to remedy this issue through a series of additional steps to ensure enough audit board members are made available. Because of the measures SB1342 puts in place, we are confident that all 15 counties will be able to conduct their routine post-election audit after the November General Election.
Well-designed post-election tabulation audits can provide solid evidence to support the reported election outcome. We know that the eyes of the nation will once again be on Arizona in November and by enacting this legislation, with every county able to conduct their routine post-election audit, the state will be well positioned to stand up the election results.
We appreciate all of your work in promoting and implementing election practices that strengthen democracy for all voters. We hope that you will consider SB1342 among those efforts and sign this piece of legislation.
Respectfully submitted,
Jenny Guzman
Program Director
Common Cause Arizona
Pamela Smith
President & CEO
Verified Voting