Arizona county supervisor who delayed 2022 certification of results accepts plea deal
A Republican supervisor in Cochise County, Arizona, who was charged with multiple felonies last year for delaying certification of the 2022 midterm election has pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor charge.
Peggy Judd declined to certify the 2022 midterm elections with another Republican supervisor, Thomas Crosby, citing baseless concerns about voting systems. The two initially pleaded not guilty in December. Crosby's case is still ongoing.
"Mrs. Judd acknowledged that she failed to canvass the election as required by law and agreed to plead guilty to Failure or Refusal to Perform Duty by an Election Officer, a Class 3 misdemeanor," Attorney General Kris Mayes said in a statement.
Judd will be sentenced to unsupervised probation for 90 days and pay a maximum fine of $500, according to the plea deal.
Reached by phone, Judd told ABC News her probation agreement requires her to certify the upcoming elections, but that she would likely have voted to certify anyway, citing improvements by the county elections office to voting machines.
Judd, whose term expires in December, said she understands her ministerial responsibilities better now, but disagrees with the requirement that she certify elections, "no matter how rotten it looks or smells."
"What kind of safety is that for the voters?" she said.
Judd added she did not regret her vote to delay certification in 2022 and felt strongly that the state's prosecution had been politically motivated.
"Had there been a Republican attorney general they would have never brought the charges against us," she said. "Everybody recognizes that."
Mayes added in the statement, "Any attempt to interfere with elections in Arizona will not be tolerated. My office will continue to pursue justice and ensure that anyone who undermines our electoral system is held accountable. Today's plea agreement and sentencing should serve as a strong reminder that I will not hesitate to use every tool available to uphold the rule of law and protect the integrity of Arizona's elections."
In the latest installment of "Protecting Your Vote," ABC News' Terry Moran examined the issue of election certification by county officials, which has emerged as a potential flashpoint in closely contested races.
All 50 states make election certification by county officials a mandatory part of their job to prevent local partisan politicians from meddling in election results. Election disputes, which frequently arise, are typically resolved through audits, recounts and the courts.
"It may seem odd to people that [the county officials] who are certifying the election aren't necessarily the ones that investigate all the things that happened in the election," said Sean Morales-Doyle, a voting rights expert at the Brennan Center for Justice, a nonprofit think tank. "But that's just not their job."
