Maricopa County certifies election results on Monday
MARICOPA COUNTY, Ariz. (NBC) - Election officials in Maricopa County voted unanimously to certify the 2022 election results.
But not before hearing from several citizens who vehemently claimed the election was fraudulent.
"You guys are awful. We apologize for your dishonesty. Lies, lies, lies."
For multiple hours, most of the public comment went after the board.
The public comment's overall goal
The goal: Stop the certification of an election.
"I came here today to get an up-close and personal look at the seven traitors to the US constitution," a Maricopa County resident spoke.
"Watching you pledge allegiance to my flag was disgusting," another Maricopa County resident said.
The overall claims made were not new.
Printer issues
That issues with printers on Election Day, led to long lines and disenfranchised voters, mixed with the occasional conspiracy theory.
However, after the public comment, most of the people who showed up to speak left.
They refused to stay and hear answers to some of their claims and concerns.
Now printer issues did impact some vote centers, but they were fixed on Election Day and every voter had the option to leave their ballot in a box to be counted later.
Polling line issues
While some centers had long lines, most didn't, and there was always a vote center nearby with a shorter wait time they could use.
"We had 188 locations during that 5:00pm hour that were 30 minutes or less," an election official spoke.
In the end, the board stood by each other, and the results of the election.
"These are good men who are in public service for the right reasons. I'm proud to serve with every one of them. Again, this was not a perfect election, but the votes have been counted accurately," said Bill Gates, the Chairman for the Maricopa County Board of Supervisors.
Lawsuits and recounts
However, the election fight in Maricopa County is still not over.
Lawsuits filed by both the Kari Lake and Abe Hamadeh campaigns still need to be resolved.
Also, there will be the legally required recounts later next month.
