The Associated Press (AP) has acknowledged that the recent indictment of 18 Arizona Republicans is part of a campaign to discourage Republicans from questioning the integrity of the 2024 election. Democratic Arizona Attorney General Kris Mayes charged 18 individuals, alleging that 11 of them illegally acted as alternate electors to certify the Arizona election in favor of Donald Trump amid ongoing challenges to the election results. The AP article titled “Charges against Trump’s 2020 ‘fake electors’ are expected to deter a repeat this year” highlighted how the indictment could impact future challenges to the 2024 election.
The article quoted Center for Election Innovation & Research founder David Becker and left-wing Brennan Center veteran Justin Levitt, who both supported the severity of the charges against the Republicans. The article also mentioned how the New York Times contacted an election integrity advocate to inquire about the impact of the Arizona indictments on the upcoming 2024 election.
While Mayes accused the Republicans of engaging in electoral disobedience, the article pointed out similar incidents where Democrats urged electors to defy voters’ choices in the past without facing consequences. The parallels between the situation in 2020 and past elections, like the 1960 presidential election in Hawaii, were also highlighted in the article.
Brianna Lyman, an elections correspondent at The Federalist, authored the article.
