False claims about pens in Arizona primary prompts warning
(KYMA, KECY/ AP News) - The attorney for Arizona’s most populous county sent a letter on Tuesday warning a local candidate to stop encouraging voters to steal the pens given to them at polling places on election day to mark their ballots.
Tuesday was the final day of voting in Arizona’s primary, and the conspiracy theories surrounding the ballot-marking pens echoed the now infamous #sharpiegate controversy that erupted after the 2020 election.
Maricopa County Attorney Rachel Mitchell sent the letter to Gail Golec - a candidate for County Supervisor who made various social media posts on Tuesday urging supporters not to use the pens provided by election workers at polling places and to take them when they leave.
In a response on Twitter, Golec said said her intention was to “protect our vote, not encourage you to steal pens” and reiterated false claims that "the pens provided by poll workers allow election workers to change people’s votes."
