Maricopa County Recorder Adrian Fontes rode into office in 2016 in the wake of a “presidential preference” election that went terribly wrong, with people standing in line for too long at too few polling places. So when 62 of the County’s 503 polling places failed to open on time Tuesday morning, it begged comparison. Fontes, a Democrat, claims it is not the same at all. The company hired to set up the voting equipment, he said, did not send the number of technicians the county had contracted for, and so he had to “up-train” county employees to plug in wires and get the equipment ready for election day. The company said it did its job, and the problems were on the county end.
Secretary of State Michelle Reagan, a Republican, suggested Fontes extend voting hours.
Since it had apparently never happened before that anyone could remember, election lawyers theorized the request would require an emergency court hearing and court orders to get it done. Turns out they were wrong.
“Let’s be clear,” Fontes told The Arizona Republic, “Election day belongs to the Board of Supervisors.”
The county recorder makes the plans, subject to the board’s approval, and takes care of early ballots, but the supervisors make decisions on election day itself.
Full Article: Maricopa County Recorder Adrian Fontes defends his office.