Arizona’s 15 county recorders this week delivered a letter to Secretary of State Michele Reagan in which they said communication between their offices and hers is “in a dire state” because state Election Director Eric Spencer has been “ineffective and disrespectful.” The county recorders said in the Jan. 23 letter that Spencer has been verbally abusive, “rude” and “dismissive” of questions posed to him by the recorders and their staffs. In one instance, they wrote, Spencer said the recorders were “incompetent,” and that he has refused to answer “questions of critical importance posed by those same elections officials.” The recorders also said Spencer has neglected statutory obligations and created legal and ethical conflicts with his demands that recorders remove voters from registration rolls.
The recorders demanded that their communications with Reagan’s office moving forward not only be “conducted with respect and professionalism,” but also include Reagan herself.
Secretary of State spokesman Matt Roberts said that, after Reagan received the letter, she spoke on the phone with Coconino County Recorder Patty Hansen, the president of the Arizona County Recorders Association, and that Reagan is encouraged by their conversation.
“(Reagan) is going to communicate with all of the county recorders, as she has in the past,” Roberts said. “And she’s excited about the opportunities we have in 2017 to work together with the recorders, as she always has.
Full Article: County recorders call relationship with Secretary of State ‘dire’ | Arizona Center for Investigative Reporting.