Audit contractor asks to keep methods of ballot recount secret
Court order asks to shield process from the public
PHOENIX, Ariz. (KYMA, KECY) - The contractor hired by the Republican-controlled Arizona state Senate to oversee the recount of more than 2 million Maricopa County ballots doesn't want a judge to share with the public how it will conduct the audit.
A Phoenix judge wants to know how lawmakers and contractor Cyber Ninjas will maintain voter privacy and ballot secrecy during the recount. On Friday he ordered the Senate and the contractor to submit their policies and procedures for review ahead of a Tuesday hearing on the issue.
The contractor filed those policies on Sunday, but did so "under seal," meaning the proposal cannot be publicly revealed. Cyber Ninjas has also asked the judge to close the hearing to both the public and the media. No ruling on that request yet.
Arizona Democratic Chair Raquel Terán Monday afternoon raised questions about the secrecy surrounding the process. Terán wrote:
“The Arizona Democratic Party will continue to insist on transparency and compliance with the law, but at this point, it is clear that Senate President Fann and the Cyber Ninjas think they're above the law. Arizona Republicans are afraid of public scrutiny of their poorly-run and haphazard conspiracy theory-fueled operation. They are handling our ballots in secret and forcing taxpayers to foot the bill, including including the fees of their lawyers, who are fighting against transparency and holding the Senate accountable."
-Raquel Terán, Arizona Democratic Party Chair
PHOENIX (AP) — A contractor hired by Arizona’s state Senate to oversee the recount of 2.1 million ballots in the county that includes the metro Phoenix area wants a judge to keep its methods for ensuring ballot privacy secret. The request came ahead of a hearing set for Tuesday. A judge on Friday ordered the Senate and ballot recount contractor Cyber Ninjas to submit their policies and procedures for ensuring voter privacy and ballot secrecy so he could review them. Cyber Ninjas filed the policies under seal Sunday and asked for the hearing to be closed to the media and to the public.
