MAGA 'election integrity warrior' accused of forging signatures: lawsuit

17 April 2024

In Arizona, far-right State Sen. Austin Smith has often accused Democrats, without evidence, of trying to steal elections. The MAGA Republican, a leader of the Arizona Freedom Caucus and a prominent figure in radio host Charlie Kirk's Turning Point USA, has repeatedly called for "election integrity" and accused Democrats of opposing it.

But according to Arizona's KJZZ-FM — a National Public Radio (NPR) station in Phoenix — a complaint filed in the Maricopa County, Arizona Superior Court alleges that Smith forges signatures needed to qualify for the ballot in 2024 and run for reelection.

KJZZ's Camryn Sanchez reports that the complaint "alleges that nine pages of signatures Smith gathered appear to be written by the same person and look like Smith's own handwriting."

"According to state law," Sanchez explains, "candidates found guilty of petition forgery are no longer eligible to seek election, or run for any public office for no less than five years…. Smith needed 527 signatures to qualify for the primary ballot in Legislative District 29 and collected 826. However, if Smith is found guilty of petition forgery, the complaint argues that under state law, all his petitions — not just those he personally collected — should be disqualified."

The plaintiff in the complaint is James Ashurst, a voter in Goodyear, Arizona.

Ashurst, in an official statement, said, "It's deeply concerning that Smith has so little respect for Arizona voters. This is a betrayal of his constituents and all Arizonans and I hope Smith will be held accountable."

Ashurst isn't the only Arizona resident who is lambasting the 28-year-old Smith.

In a scathing op-ed published on April 16, the Arizona Republic's Laurie Roberts finds the allegation against Smith ironic in light of how quick he has been to accuse Democrats of trying to steal elections.

Roberts argues, "The lawsuit includes sworn declarations from the two voters, Bruce A. Bell and Daniel Hernandez, declaring that they did not sign Smith's nomination petition. If true, that's a stunner. Smith, after all, is a leader in the hard- right Arizona Freedom Caucus — a guy who sees a Democratic plot to steal elections under every bush…. What would be more conspiratorial than a supposed warrior for election integrity forging signatures on his own nominating petitions?"

Arizona State Sen. Priya Sundareshan, who chairs the Arizona Democratic Legislative Campaign Committee, is also speaking out.

"For years," Sundareshan told the Arizona Republic, "Smith has helped to perpetuate false election claims and conspiracy theories. Now, it may prove to be true that Smith is the one undermining our election integrity by committing fraud. If that's true, shame on him."

Read KJZZ's full report at this link and Laurie Roberts' Arizona Republic op-ed here.

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