Maricopa County Recorder Stephen Richer appeared to deny launching the Pro-Democracy Republicans of Arizona political action committee during Kari Lake’s election lawsuit trial on Wednesday despite numerous reports to the contrary.
After Lake’s counsel asked Richer if he “ran a political action committee that was opposed, and sent money opposing my client for governor,” the Maricopa County Recorder brazenly retorted, “That is 100 percent false.”
“100 percent false?” Lake’s lawyer asked Richer once more. “Correct,” Richer claimed, under oath.
During Kari Lake's election lawsuit trial on Wednesday, Maricopa County Recorder Stephen Richer denied creating the Pro-Democracy Republicans of Arizona PAC. He was under oath.
Richer launched the PAC in July to help finance Republican election fraud deniers.@ValiantNewsLive pic.twitter.com/0B1L7tyLB6
— Andrew (@whiteaf5) December 21, 2022
Despite Richer’s blatant denial, numerous reports have surfaced over the last year highlighting Richer’s Pro-Democracy Republicans of Arizona PAC.
According to a report by the AZ Mirror published in November 2021, Richer created the PAC in July 2021 to financially support candidates in GOP primaries for legislative and county-level races who “acknowledge the validity of the 2020 election and condemn the events of January 6, 2021 as a terrible result of the lies told about the November election.”
Expert suggests The Arizona Elections Procedures Manual shows Stephen Richer was not being truthful when he said he was not responsible for the oversight of drop boxes on Election Day pic.twitter.com/yiC5mFK7UT
— Kari Lake (@KariLake) December 21, 2022
Lake, a staunch ally of 45th President Donald Trump, has joined in Republican concerns that the November 2020 election was “rigged” in favor of Democrats. Conveniently, candidates who support that particular Republican political stance are exactly who Richer’s PAC aims to oppose.
The AZ Mirror report noted that “It’s highly unusual for an elected elections official such as Richer to get involved in elections the way he’s planning to do, and by spending in elections that his office will oversee, he may open himself up to allegations of impropriety from candidates his PAC opposes.”
🚨 Breaking 🚨
Maricopa County Recorder Stephen Richer confirms chain of custody was broken.
All ballots that are delegated to a third party or location are in defiance of Arizona election law. https://t.co/7385eDIqVK
— Kari Lake War Room (@KariLakeWarRoom) December 21, 2022
“Obviously, there are some Republicans who have courageously stood up and acknowledged the truth, and there are others who haven’t. We would be supporting the former,” Richer said of election fraud deniers.
Either that or he doesn't know what his job is. Is that any better?
— Kari Lake War Room (@KariLakeWarRoom) December 21, 2022
“We know that there’s a pot of gold at the and of the rainbow if you indulge some of these fantasies and some of these lies, and I think, quite frankly, that has motivated some of these speakers to be especially loud about it because they get rewarded in either Twitter followers or financial contributions from across the country,” he said. “So, this is my effort to at least reward or incentivize people to do the right thing, the responsible thing.”
This news and commentary by Andrew White originally appeared on Valiant News.
