Attorneys for failed Arizona gubernatorial hopeful Kari Lake are being fined $2,000 by the Arizona Supreme Court after the justices concluded they lied — repeatedly — in one of their claims about why she is entitled to a new election.
In an order Thursday, Chief Justice Robert Brutinel said there was absolutely no factual basis for her attorneys to claim in her appeal of lower court rulings that it was "undisputed'' that 35,563 unaccounted for ballots were added to the total in Maricopa County. And Brutinel said she repeated the same "false assertions'' in subsequent legal filings.
But the justices rejected a bid by for legal fees by attorneys for Gov. Katie Hobbs, who defeated her in the 2022 election, and for Secretary of State Adrian Fontes, who also was named in Lake's challenge.
Brutinel acknowledged that the high court did uphold most of lower court rulings that there was no basis for Lake's challenge of the election.
But he noted that the justices did agree with her on one point, saying she should have been able to present evidence that Maricopa County did not follow its own procedures when verifying signatures on early ballots. And that meant there was no clear victory for Hobbs or Fontes.
Thursday's order also formally sends the case back to Maricopa County Superior Court Judge Peter Thompson to now consider that claim.