Arizona ex-lawmaker, former Turning Point leader gets probation for signature fraud

Former Arizona GOP lawmaker Austin Smith was sentenced to probation Tuesday for forging petition signatures to get himself reelected.

In 2024, Smith was pressured to drop his reelection bid when he was hit with a lawsuit accusing him of forging pages of signatures on a petition to get him on the ballot for reelection to the state Legislature.

Smith pleaded guilty in November to reduced charges of attempted fraud and illegal signing of election petitions. Along with probation, he must also pay a fine and is prohibited from running for office for five years.

Smith was the “senior director” of Turning Point USA’s political arm when he was first indicted. He’s now listed as a “senior enterprise director” for the group.

Smith had previously questioned the integrity of Arizona’s elections.

He also received a five-year ban on running for public office for using nominating petitions that contained forged signatures in a bid to qualify for a 2024 primary election.

Politics

Arizona ex-lawmaker, former Turning Point leader pleads guilty to signature fraud

Associated Press, Camryn Sanchez

Austin Smith, 30, represented an Arizona House district in the Phoenix suburbs for one term before dropping his reelection bid in April 2024 when questions arose about signatures on his nominating petitions. He also resigned at the time as a leader of the conservative group Turning Point.

Smith represented an Arizona House district in the Phoenix suburbs for one term before dropping his reelection bid in April 2024 when questions arose about signatures on his nominating petitions.

He resigned at the time as a leader at Turning Point Action, the campaign arm of Turning Point USA, which has become a major force in Arizona Republican politics. His bio page said Smith was approached in 2019 by Turning Point co-founder Charlie Kirk and Tyler Bowyer, another top leader of the group, about launching Turning Point Action. Kurt Altman, Smith's lawyer, told the judge that his client was mortified by his conduct and will never run for public office again. “He realizes that things got out of hand,” Altman said. “And in today’s political atmosphere, things get out of hand very quickly. He is embarrassed by the lapse in judgment.”

When handing down the sentence, Superior Court Judge Aryeh Schwartz said the offense undermined the integrity of the election process, but also said Smith accepted responsibility for his actions. Smith, who was also fined $5,500 as part of his sentence, declined to address the judge during sentencing. He also declined to comment outside of court when a reporter asked him if he wanted to do so.

Altman told the judge that Smith has started an agricultural business.

Smith previously portrayed the allegations against him as a coordinated attack by Democrats that was “silly on its face,” but said he would drop out of his reelection campaign to avoid racking up legal bills.

In campaign literature, Smith voiced support for a Republican-backed review of the 2020 presidential election results in Maricopa County that ultimately ended without producing proof to support President Donald Trump’s false claims of a stolen election. Smith also sponsored an unsuccessful proposal to ban voting by mail and complained in a campaign ad about political elites breaking election laws.