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Election Facts

Election Myths

Correcting the Record

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Maricopa County Elections, a department of the Board of Supervisors, is committed to providing voters with accurate information about elections administration in the country’s second largest voting jurisdiction.

Elections are complex and governed by many state and federal laws and procedures. Learn more about how Maricopa County administers elections and get the facts about some election myths. You can also get updates about Maricopa County elections operations directly in your inbox. Click here to subscribe!

Election Facts

Primary Election
Arizona’s Primary Election occurs every two years, always in an even year. This election includes federal, state, county and local offices that are up for election. As a Primary Election serves to narrow down each recognized political party's candidates, there are ballots for Republican, Democrat, Libertarian, Green, and No Label voters. Voters registered as an independent or no party preference must select a Republican or Democrat ballot to participate in the election. Libertarian, Green, and No Labels parties hold closed primaries and only voters registered with those parties may vote in those elections. Some areas may have a non-partisan ballot option. Check back later for more information. Visit BeBallotReady.Vote to verify your registration information.

General Election
Arizona’s General Election occurs every two years, always in an even year. This election includes federal, state, county and local offices that are up for election. The general election is the final election held between nominees of various parties, as well as non-partisan races, ballot propositions and initiatives. Visit BeBallotReady.Vote to verify your registration information.

Jurisdictional and Municipal Elections
Local jurisdictions, such as cities, towns, or school districts, can hold special elections outside of the regular Primary/General Election. These elections can take place in March, May, August and November. Jurisdictional and Municipal Elections can also take place during the Arizona’s Primary and General Elections.

Presidential Preference Election
The Presidential Preference Election is an election for voters registered with a specific political party to designate their preference for their party’s presidential candidate. Voters must be registered with the participating party of the Presidential Preference Election. Voters registered as independent or without a party preference cannot participate in the Presidential Preference Election. Arizona holds a Presidential Preference Election once every four years in March or on a date selected by the Governor through proclamation during a presidential election year. In order for an election to happen, the State Political Parties must submit a request to have an election for their particular party.

You can find your sample ballot prior to each election at BeBallotReady.Vote. To learn more about city, town, or school district elections, visit our Jurisdictional Election Contacts page. Information about statewide measures, such as propositions, can be found on the Arizona Secretary of State’s Office website at azsos.gov.

No. If you marked more ovals than what is allowed, it is considered an "overvote." No vote will count for that contest, but all other votes will count. If you did not vote for a given office or issue or marked less ovals than allowed, this is considered an "undervote." In this instance, only the marked ovals are counted.

Independent voters and those without a party preference can vote in Primary Elections but cannot vote in Presidential Preference Elections.

In Arizona’s Primary Elections, independents may request to vote in the Republican or Democratic Primary. If you are on the Active Early Voting List, you must make your request before the Elections Department can send you a ballot. You can do so at BeBallotReady.Vote.

Due to a ruling by the U.S. District Court, the Arizona Libertarian party is not included in Arizona’s open Primary. This means only registered Libertarians may vote a Libertarian ballot.

The Maricopa County Elections team strives to hire bipartisan voters in all election worker positions. In order to support the over 2.4 million registered voters in Maricopa County, we must hire thousands of community members each election cycle.

Staffing elections requires a continuous effort of recruiting, hiring, training, and then backfilling positions of those that quit. Partnerships with the Maricopa County political parties play a critical role in helping ensure this bipartisan staffing. We reach out to every potential election worker the parties provide. Unfortunately, not all are willing or able to serve.

We follow Arizona law and aim for equal representation from the two major political parties as we fill temporary election worker positions. In fact, our efforts to find bipartisan election workers often go beyond what's in statute. However, there are many times when we have election workers quit in the days right before Election Day and including on Election Day. Our recruiters do their best to backfill these positions with someone from the same party, but there are some instances when it is not possible. In those cases, we follow the Arizona Election Procedures Manual which tells us to ensure election boards still have a diversity of parties and affiliations. We achieved that in August and will always prioritize bipartisan oversight.

Here are some facts about hiring for the 2022 August Primary Election:

We planned to hire 2,148 poll workers to staff Vote Centers and 438 election workers to staff temporary positions at the Elections Department.
By Election Day we hired 1,964 poll workers and 356 election workers. Of those working at the Elections Department we hired 78 Republicans (R), 82 Democrats (D), and 29 Party-not-Declared (PND) for areas that handle ballots.
Just one week before Election Day, we had to backfill over 220 poll worker positions. We estimate well over 500 temporary election workers quit and then had to be backfilled. It is not unusual to have a significant amount of turnover, but since 2020 it has been higher than normal.

We appreciate the partnership with Maricopa County political parties and we will continue to work to ensure parity in our positions – Republican, Democrat, Libertarian and those without a party preference. Voters interested in applying to support elections can visit GetInvolved.Maricopa.Vote.

Below are frequently asked questions about early voting and in person voting. Click here for quick access to in person voting.

Early Voting

Voters can receive their ballot by mail utilizing one of two options:

OPTION 1
Join the Active Early Voting List (AEVL) - To have a ballot automatically mailed to you for every election in which you are eligible, a registered voter can sign up for the Active Early Voting List (AEVL). Voters on the AEVL must have an Arizona mailing address. Ballots are mailed to the voter 27 days prior to any election.

Voters can sign up online at ServiceArizona.com under the voter registration pathway. Voters may also use a paper signup form. Click here to download it. Turn in a hard-copy form to:

Maricopa County Elections
Attn: Early Voting
510 South 3rd Avenue
Phoenix, AZ 85003

OPTION 2
Make a one-time ballot request for an election or election cycle - To request a ballot for just one election or election cycle (Primary & General Elections), you can:

Call us at (602) 506-1511
Visit "Request an Early Ballot" – click on 'One-Time Request' button
Mail in a written request to:
- Maricopa County Elections
  Attn: Early Voting
  510 South 3rd Avenue
  Phoenix, AZ 85003

No. Arizona law does not allow official election materials, such as ballots, to be forwarded by the Post Office. If you would like to have your ballot mailed to a temporary mailing address, make your request by calling the Elections Department at (602) 506-1511 or send an email to [email protected]. If emailing, please provide your Full Name, Residence Address, Temporary Mailing Address and Date of Birth for verification purposes. If you are in the military or a military family member stationed out of the county, or you live overseas, please find out more information at MilitaryOverseas.Maricopa.Vote.

If you damaged your mail ballot, you may request a replacement ballot in the mail by calling (602) 506-1511 or by emailing [email protected] no later than seven business days before the election. You may also request a replacement ballot by visiting any voting location found at Locations.Maricopa.Vote until 7 p.m. on Election Day.

No. The green affidavit envelope has pre-paid, business first class postage. Stamps could slow down the mail. Please sign, date and include your phone number on the green ballot affidavit envelope before you return your ballot, so that the Elections Department may contact you if there are questions about your signature. The phone number provided on the envelope is not shared and is only used by the Elections Department.

Party affiliation cannot be shown on the green return early ballot envelope, but the ballot itself is required to show political party and a color designation in the heading in a primary election. Changed by the Arizona Legislature in 2021, Maricopa County’s green return envelopes fully comply with this new law. Statute says that counties must “ensure that the ballot return envelopes are of a type that does not reveal the voter's selections or political party affiliation and that is tamper evident when properly sealed.” (A.R.S. §§ 16-462, 16-545).

With more than 19,000 ballot styles in Maricopa County, the window on the back of the yellow carrier envelope allows us to quickly scan the 2D barcode containing the ballot style to ensure each voter receives the correct ballot.

Ballots returned without your assigned green envelope cannot be counted. Contact us at (602) 506-1511 or email [email protected] to request a new ballot and envelope. If you do not have enough time to wait for a new ballot in the mail, visit a voting location to vote in-person. Locations are open starting 27 days before an election. Visit Locations.Maricopa.Vote for hours and locations.

The Elections Department checks the signature on your green affidavit envelope against all known signatures in your official voter registration file and past affidavit signatures. Our signature verification process has multi-level checks to ensure only valid signatures are counted. Make sure you provide your phone number on the green affidavit envelope. The Elections Department uses it to contact voters with questionable signatures. State law provides voters with questionable signatures three business days after a local election to confirm their signature and five business days after a large, federal election. To update your signature on file, you must complete a new paper voter registration form. Find the form here.

All ballot affidavit envelopes require a signature that is compared against a known signature on the official voter registration file when received. Maricopa County has internal controls and tracking methods for ballot security beginning from when the ballot is initially mailed, to how voted ballots are transported from the post office to onsite security and more. Maricopa County performs multiple audit checks before and after ballots are tabulated. Only verified ballots are counted. All uncounted ballots and the reason are included in the official canvass. Track your ballot by texting "JOIN" to 628-683 or online at BeBallotReady.Vote.

Sign and date the green ballot affidavit envelope and return it with your ballot inside. The last recommended day to return a ballot in the mail 7 business days before Election Day. After that date, voters must drop it off at a secure Maricopa County ballot drop box or voting location by 7 p.m. Track your ballot by texting "JOIN" to 628-683 or online at BeBallotReady.Vote.

Yes, if you received your ballot by mail, you can still choose to vote in person if you have not already voted by mail. Our check-in system will cancel your mailed ballot if you vote in-person. It also knows if voters have already cast a ballot by mail or in person. In person voting locations are open starting 27 days before an election. Visit Locations.Maricopa.Vote for hours and locations.

The “Active Early Voting List” is formerly known as the “Permanent Early Voting List.” (See Senate Bill 1485, 55th Legislature).

Just like the Permanent Early Voting List, the Active Early Voting List allows a voter to sign up to automatically receive a ballot by mail for every election they are eligible to vote in. Early voting begins 27 days before the election. Voters can expect to receive their ballot in the mail shortly after.

A voter may be removed from AEVL if the voter does not cast an early ballot in at least one candidate election over the course of two consecutive federal election cycles and fails to respond to an official notice from the Elections Department. The voter would remain registered to vote and can sign up for AEVL at any time in the future.

Check your voting history at BeBallotReady.Vote.

No. If you signed up to be on the Permanent Early Voting List, you are automatically on the Active Early Voting List and no further action is needed on your part. You can check if you are on the Active Early Voting List by visiting your voter dashboard at BeBallotReady.Vote or by calling us at 602-506-1511.

Voters have two options to have their name taken off the Active Early Voting List (AEVL).

If you have a valid Arizona driver license or non-operating ID, go to ServiceArizona.com to remove your name from AEVL by submitting a voter registration update and selecting “NO” to the AEVL option.
Make a written request with a signature to remove your name from AEVL. Please provide your name, date of birth, voter registration address and signature. You can mail the written request to:

Maricopa County Elections
510 S. 3rd Avenue
Phoenix, AZ 85003

By law, this request must be made 45 days prior to an election. A.R.S. § 16-544(F) states: “If the voter has not returned the notice or otherwise notified the election officer within forty-five days before the election that the voter does not wish to receive an early ballot by mail for the election or elections indicated, the ballot shall automatically be scheduled for mailing.”

Additionally, some jurisdictional elections are conducted by mail at the request of the jurisdiction. Voters living in these jurisdictions may receive a ballot by mail even if they are not on AEVL. Even in these elections, there are always in person voting options. Visit Locations.Maricopa.Vote for sites and hours.

Yes. Voting by mail is secure. Only registered voters may request a ballot in the mail. All ballot affidavit envelopes require a signature that is compared against a known signature on the official voter registration file. Maricopa County tracking methods and internal controls for ballot security beginning from when the ballot is initially mailed, to how voted ballots are transported from the post office to onsite security and more. Maricopa County performs multiple audit checks before and after ballots are tabulated. Only verified ballots are counted. All uncounted ballots and the reason are included in the official canvass. Learn more about election security at BeBallotReady.Vote.

In Person Voting

Every voter is required to show proof of identity when voting in person. You need a valid government issued ID that includes your name, photo and the address where you are registered to vote (ex. AZ driver license or tribal ID). If that ID does not match your voter record, you need two forms of ID (Per A.R.S. § 16-579(A)). Find the full list at GetID.Maricopa.Vote. A few examples include:

Official Election Mail
Bank Statement or Utility Bill
Tribal ID with or without photo
Voter Registration Card (BeBallotReady.Vote)
Valid AZ Vehicle Registration or Insurance Card

If a voter does not have sufficient identification, the voter will be issued a provisional ballot. In order to be a valid and counted ballot, the voter must provide sufficient ID to the County Recorder three (3) days after a jurisdictional election. Learn more about ID at the polls here.

Did you know that provisional ballots are a safeguard to ensure no voter is ever turned away from a voting location? If a voter’s eligibility is not certain, a voter will always be offered a provisional ballot. There are two kinds of provisional ballots: regular and conditional. Most provisional ballots do not require the voter to do anything additional. Elections staff will research the voter’s eligibility, and if that eligibility can be confirmed, the ballot will be counted. In the last election, this process allowed nearly 3,000 voters to have a ballot counted. Learn more about provisional ballots here.

If a voter does not have the necessary documents to confirm their identity, the voter will be offered a conditional provisional ballot. Voters issued a conditional provisional ballot need to return with a valid form of identification to the voting location, Maricopa County elections office, or city or town clerk's office after they vote to confirm their identity. Find more information on conditional provisional ballots, acceptable forms of identification and ID Verification Sites here.

In Maricopa County, poll workers place felt-tip pens in each voting booth for voters to mark their ballots. This felt-tip pen is provided to voters because Election Day ballot counting equipment needs the ink to dry fast. Slow drying ink like ballpoint pens, can easily smear inside the ballot counting machine. When the wet ink from the ballot smears inside the machine, it will not allow the tabulator to count any further ballots until it is repaired. The wet ink can also smudge on the voter’s ballot, potentially causing ink to smear into other ovals you didn’t intend to mark.

Learn more by watching this video.

If you’re voting an early ballot at home, we recommend using black or blue pens. Make sure the ink is dry before placing your voted ballot into the green return envelope. Please do not use red ink as the tabulators can’t read red colors.

Voters who are unable to leave their vehicle may use curbside voting to cast a ballot at a voting location. All locations will have signage posted that includes a phone number to take advantage of curbside voting. The voter remains in their vehicle while poll workers provide assistance. Learn more about accessibility at the polls here.

If you are unable to mark the ballot yourself, you can receive assistance from a person of your choice at the voting location or at home if voting an early ballot.

Each in-person voting location has a touchscreen and audio machine that allows for voters needing assistance to vote independently. If you prefer to have poll workers directly assist you while voting in person, two board members of different political party affiliations can help.

If you need assistance due to a confining illness or physical challenges, you may request an Elections Department Special Election Board (SEB) to assist you. SEB’s are two-member boards consisting of individuals from different political parties that provide voting assistance.

To schedule a Special Election Board to assist you, contact Maricopa County Elections and include your full name, residential address, date of birth, and phone number through one of the following methods:

Email: [email protected]
Phone: (602) 506-1511
Fax: (480) 360-3628

Primary Elections
The law requires candidate names to be rotated so each appears an equal number of times at the top of their race. For precinct committeemen races or if there are an equal number or fewer candidates seeking office than the “vote for” number, state law requires those names to appear in alphabetical order by last name (A.R.S. § 16-464).

General Elections
The law requires that partisan candidate names appear in descending order according to the votes cast for governor for that county in the most recent general election. For Maricopa County, that order would be Republican, Democratic, then Libertarian. Independent candidates or those without a party are placed below the recognized parties. If the contest has more than one candidate from each party running (such as corporation commissioner), the candidate names are first ordered by party and then rotated so each appears an equal number of times at the top of their race. The exception to that rule is if there is an equal or fewer number of candidates seeking office then the number to be elected, then state law requires those names to appear in alphabetical order (A.R.S. § 16-502). When president is on a General Election ballot and presidential electors are to be voted for, the presidential candidate names are first ordered by party and then appear in alphabetical order according to the presidential candidate’s last name (A.R.S. § 16-507).

Presidential Preference Elections
For presidential preference elections, which are sometimes referred to as presidential primaries, candidate names are drawn by lot at a public meeting called by the Arizona Secretary of State. The law prohibits the rotation of candidate names (A.R.S. § 16-245).

Jurisdictional and Non-Partisan Elections
For other jurisdictional and non-partisan elections like city, town and local school board races, candidates are either placed in alphabetical order by last name or in the order determined by the jurisdiction (A.R.S. § 16-341).

Ballot-by-Mail Elections
For ballot-by-mail elections, candidate names should be rotated so each appears an equal number of times at the top of their race. If candidate name rotation is found to be impracticable, the position of the names of candidates shall be drawn by lot at a public meeting (A.R.S. § 16-464).

All early and provisional ballots are counted in Maricopa County's secure Ballot Tabulation Center. Below are the types of security measures we have in place over this critical space.

Restricted access - Access is restricted to those with a job responsibility or direct oversight of tabulation.
Monitored 24-7 - Cameras stream live 24-7. Watch it here.
Political Party Oversight - During tabulation, party representatives and observers are present, providing oversight.
No Internet Connections - No equipment or programs in the Ballot Tabulation Center are connected to the internet.
Visible Wiring - Visible wiring shows how tabulation equipment is not connected to the internet,but instead routed directly to a secure server, which is behind glass and on display for public view.
Red Pens Only - Only red pens are allowed in the Ballot Tabulation center, as equipment cannot read red ink.

Learn More.

No. Maricopa County uses an air-gapped system in its tabulation room, meaning the ballot counting equipment is never connected to the internet and is completely separated from the Maricopa County network. There are no routers connected to the tabulation system and there never have been. See attached closed network diagram of the County’s Election Management System.

Two certified Voting System Testing Laboratories tested the equipment in February 2021 and found no evidence of internet connectivity. These tests determined the tabulators were not transmitting information outside the closed air gapped system within the County tabulation center or while being delivered, returned, or used at a Vote Center.

Before and after every election, accuracy tests are completed to verify that the ballot counting equipment was programmed correctly and counts ballots accurately. This is called the Logic and Accuracy test. The pre-test ensures the tabulation equipment counts the ballots accurately and the post-election test verifies no changes occurred on the equipment.

Learn More

Used on Election Day at all voting locations for state-wide elections, precinct-based tabulators count ballots onsite to keep a record of votes cast at each location. Results are printed on receipt paper and are stored on two separate, encrypted memory cards. The memory cards must be programmed together at the Ballot Tabulation Center, and the tabulator will only work if both memory cards inside are programmed together. The precinct-based tabulators only accept Election Day ballots and cannot read early ballots or provisional ballots.

Maricopa County performs a hand count audit after every election that includes a federal or state-wide contest. The County chairman for each political party appoints representatives to select the ballots and to perform the hand count audit. The hand count audit included a random and statistically significant sampling of both mail and Election Day ballots.

Arizona has a Vote Count Verification Committee established by state law made up of statisticians and elections experts that review and set the limits for variances in the hand count. If those variances are exceeded, state law requires more ballots be hand counted to ensure the accuracy of the results.

Maricopa County has a secure, award-winning voter check-in system at all voting locations called the SiteBook, which prevents against the possibility of double voting. Developed in-house by Information Technology experts, it securely connects to the voter registration system using proprietary software and a virtual private network connection for enhanced security. It is not connected to the tabulation equipment at the voting locations.

When checking in at a voting location, the SiteBook does a real-time check of the voter database, ensuring the voter is eligible to vote in the election and that the voter has not yet cast a ballot. If a ballot has been issued but not returned, the SiteBook cancels the already issued ballot and the voter is issued a real time provisional ballot. If a ballot has been issued and returned for that voter, it notifies the voter of a returned ballot and will issue the voter a provisional ballot. The ability to track in real time each ballot issued and received back by the Elections Department safeguards against double voting.

Learn More

Maricopa County residents have three ways they can submit their voter registration. Remember to provide proof of United States Citizenship when you register to vote.

You can register online (requires Arizona Driver’s License or State ID)
You can print a voter registration form and return the completed, dated, and signed form by mail or drop it off.

Mail it back:
Maricopa County Recorder’s Office
Attn: Voter Registration 111 S. 3rd Ave, Ste 102 Phoenix, AZ 85003
Drop it off: You can use our 24-hour secure elections drop box outside the Elections Department at 510 S. 3rd Ave, Phoenix, AZ 85003. It’s located in the parking lot on the southwest corner of Lincoln and 3rd Avenue.

If you register to vote with a paper form, make sure to include a photocopy of one of the following documents as Proof of Citizenship:

Arizona Driver's License or Arizona non-operating ID
Birth certificate
Photo identification page of U.S. Passport or Passport card
U.S. Certificate of Naturalization or Alien Registration Number
Bureau of Indian Affairs or Tribal ID card

If you would like to request hard-copy voter registration forms, please contact us.

You must be registered 29 days prior to an election to be eligible to vote in that election. State law requires Arizona residents meet the following criteria to register:

A citizen of the United States of America. This includes any U.S. citizen who has never resided in the United States but whose parent is a United States citizen registered to vote in Arizona (A.R.S. § 16-103).
18-years old on or before the date of the next general election.
A resident of Arizona for 29 days preceding the election.
Not convicted of a felony or treason, unless civil rights have been restored.
Able to write his or her name or make his or her mark, unless physically disabled.
Not adjudicated an incapacitated person (A.R.S. § 14-5101).

Maricopa County voters who need to update their voter registration because they have moved, need to update their name, or would like to change their political party affiliation have the following options to update their voter registration:

1. You can update your registration online ONLY if you have an Arizona Driver's License or State ID. Enter in your name as it matches your Driver's License or State ID.

2. You can print a voter registration form and return the completed, dated, and signed form by mail or drop it off.

Mail it back:
Maricopa County Recorder’s Office
Attn: Voter Registration 111 S. 3rd Ave, Ste 102 Phoenix, AZ 85003
Drop it off: You can use our 24-hour secure elections drop box outside the Elections Department at 510 S. 3rd Ave, Phoenix, AZ 85003. It’s located in the parking lot on the southwest corner of Lincoln and 3rd Avenue.

3. You can request a voter registration form to be mailed to you with a return envelope. Use our Contact Us page in order to request a form.

4. You can update your registration in-person at a voting location. If you are already registered to vote, and you update your voter registration at a voting location, you will receive the correct ballot.

If you have an Arizona driver license or non-operating identification card issued after October 1, 1996, you will need only to provide the license number on box 9 of the voter registration form. If you do not have an Arizona license, you may include a photocopy of one of the following documents:

A legible photocopy of a birth certificate that verifies citizenship and supporting legal documentation (i.e. marriage certificate) if the name on the birth certificate is not the same as your current legal name
A legible photocopy of the pertinent pages of your passport
Presentation to the County Recorder of U.S. naturalization documents or fill in your Alien Registration Number in box 11
Your Indian Census Number, Bureau of Indian Affairs Card Number, Tribal Treaty Card Number, or Tribal Enrollment Number in box 10
A legible photocopy of your Tribal Certificate of Indian Blood or Tribal or Bureau of Indian Affairs Affidavit of Birth

Federal-only voter may vote federal contests (President, U.S. Senate, and/or U.S. House of Representatives). To remove “Federal-only” status and receive a ballot which includes state and local races and ballot measures, you must provide proof of citizenship to our office. You may contact us at (602) 506-1511 or email [email protected].

It takes our office about a week to process paper voter registration forms and 24 hours for online registering. Eligible voters should keep a copy of their paper voter registration form or confirmation number (if registered online) for their records. After the registration is processed, Maricopa County voters can access their personalized voter dashboard to check their registration at BeBallotReady.Vote. A digital Voter Registration Card is available on the dashboard. If a voter does not see their updated registration status at BeBallotReady.Vote a week after submitting their voter registration form, they can contact us at (602) 506-1511 or email us at [email protected].

You can request a new card by visiting one of our offices (locations below), calling 602-506-1511, or emailing [email protected]. You should receive your new card within 2 to 4 weeks of your request.

You may also get your digital Voter Registration Card at BeBallotReady.Vote. This can be used as a form of ID when voting in person. Learn more about ID requirements when voting in person at GetID.Maricopa.Vote.

If you receive mail for a voter who no longer lives at your address, mark the piece of mail with "Not at this Address" and return the mail to the U.S. Postal Service.

A second, final notice will be sent after the first piece of mail is returned to the Recorder's Office. This piece of mail must also be marked as "Not at this Address" and returned to the U.S. Postal Service.

By law, a County Recorder must receive two pieces of undeliverable election mail before placing a voter into Inactive status.

Download and complete the Request Cancellation of Deceased Voter Form or submit a copy of the deceased voter’s death certificate by mail to the address below:

By mail:
Maricopa County Recorder’s Office
Attn: Voter Registration
111 S. 3rd Ave, Ste 102
Phoenix, AZ 85003
By email: [email protected]
By fax: (602) 506-3069

Our office had attempted to mail you two pieces of mail, possibly a ballot or Voter Registration Card, and both items were returned to our office.

Our office may have also attempted to mail you letter regarding a new address we received from the United States Postal Service that was not returned; after 35 days a registration must be placed into inactive status in accordance with state law (A.R.S. § 16-166).

Our office may have attempted to mail you a notice or official election mail, and the mail was returned to our office. If the address where you receive your mail has changed, please submit an update to your voter registration.

If your voter registration information has not changed, please contact us at (602) 506-1511 or email us at [email protected].

Election Education Videos

Phil in the Blank Videos

Quick and straight to the point, Phil in the Blanks will help you connect the dots and fill in the blanks regarding Maricopa County Elections questions. With videos on tabulation security, how to track your ballot, ID needed to vote in person and more. Phil in the Blanks is entertaining and informative. These explainer videos are meant to answer your Maricopa County elections questions.

Watch the Videos

Correcting the Record - 2020 General Election

Maricopa County Elections, a department of the Board of Supervisors, and the Office of the Recorder Issued a report titled Correcting the Record: Maricopa County’s In-Depth Analysis of the Senate Inquiry as the final word to the Arizona Senate’s inquiry on Maricopa County’s administration of the November 2020 General Election. The in-depth analysis and review of the reports and presentations issued by the Senate’s contractors found that nearly every finding included faulty analysis, inaccurate claims, misleading conclusions, and a lack of understanding of federal and state election laws. The Senate’s election review and its contractors promoted disinformation and distrust. This report details those shortcomings and corrects the record.

Read the Report

Read Correcting the Record: Maricopa County’s In-Depth Analys...

Download the Exhibits

Download the data and exhibits used to support the report...

Read the Press Release

"I'm proud of our team for correcting the record wi...

The November 2020 general election was administered with integrity and the results were accurate and reliable. This has been proven through statutorily required accuracy tests, court cases, hand counts performed by the political parties, and post-election audits. Maricopa County Elections, A Department of the Board of Supervisors, followed all federal and state election laws.

Correcting the Record, January 2022

Election Myths

FACTS: The presentation to the Arizona Senate on Monday, January 23, 2023 on signature verification and the claims made on social media are another rehashing of the 2020 election. Maricopa County provided in depth responses in its Correcting the Record report, and our signature verification process has been assessed in multiple court cases over the last two years. Signature verification staff are trained to look at the broad and local characteristics of the signature. They don’t compare it to just one voter registration signature, instead managers compare it to all signature exemplars on file such as voter registration forms, in-person roster signatures and early voting affidavits from previous elections.

Staff are trained to mark a signature as an “exception” if the envelope is left blank or if they are not 100% confident the signature matches one of the three signature samples staff are provided in the “user level” first check. In the 2022 election, 67,837 ballots were given this indicator. All signatures marked as an exception are then sent to a manager queue, who have additional training and access to every signature we have on file for the voter. The manager then sets the status of a pending questionable signature, blank signature, or good signature. We also complete a 2% audit on every batch of 10,000 signatures before any of the envelopes can move forward.

For signatures that cannot be verified by staff, state law requires the county to make a meaningful attempt to contact the voter to confirm the signature. In the 2022 General Election, staff contacted 14,638 voters with non-matching signatures. Because of those efforts, 12,838 ballots initially marked as questionable were counted.

The accuracy and completeness of Maricopa County’s signature verification process was confirmed in court (Ward v. Jackson). Experts for both sides “found no sign of forgery or simulation … and found no basis for rejecting any of the signatures … None of them shows an abuse of discretion on the part of the reviewer.” The Arizona Supreme Court unanimously affirmed the signature review practice: “the challenge fails to present any evidence of misconduct [or] illegal voting.”

FACTS: The presentation to the Arizona Senate on Monday, January 23, 2023 was textbook disinformation, taking a common situation that occurs at a voting location and twisting it to cast doubt on the integrity of our elections.

The logs simply show the total number of times that ballots were run through tabulators in the November 2022 General Election. A ballot is secret, so this means that each insert into a tabulator is considered a unique ballot, even if it is the same voter attempting to insert their ballot multiple times.

It’s not unusual for a tabulator to not accept a ballot on the first try. Sometimes it could be a voter inserting the ballot slightly askew. If this happens, the ballot is returned to the voter to try again. The security logs show each attempt to read a ballot. Having a number higher than the total number of ballots counted is expected and shows the detail maintained in the logs.

As the county reported during the canvass presentation in November, 16,724 Election Day ballots were not able to be counted onsite at voting locations and were instead counted at the Elections Department. Poll workers reported that some voters chose to feed their ballot into the tabulator more than a dozen times before placing the ballot into a secure ballot box on site. Each of these attempts would have been reflected as a unique action in the log.

FACTS: As with every election, the Maricopa County Elections Department reconciles the number of voters that checked-in on Election Day with the number of ballots that were tabulated. That audit found that Maricopa County had a 170 more check-ins than tabulated ballots.

It’s not uncommon to have variances between check-ins and ballots. Some reasons include a voter leaving with their ballot and provisional or early ballots without an envelope inserted into the secure ballot box. When compared to other elections, the audit reconciliation for the 2022 General Election had a lower variance.

When compared to other elections (see linked report below), the audit reconciliation for the 2022 General Election had a lower variance as a percent of Election Day voters than previous Primary and General Elections.

View the full report end exhibits.

FACTS: The allegation that the County failed to create and produce chain of custody documents for early ballots dropped off on Election Day is false. There are robust tracking and security procedures in place to document and ensure proper chain-of-custody of early ballots on Election Day. These policies and procedures were followed on Election Day, as well as throughout the early voting period. In fact, the Maricopa County Superior Court found that at no point during the process were chain of custody policies broken or procedures not followed and documented.

Chain of custody documents required by Arizona law were created as soon as the County processed early ballots received on Election Day – first using estimated counts as permitted by law, then obtaining a precise count as the ballot envelopes were scanned under the supervision of a bipartisan team of Maricopa County employees.

On Election Day, our chain of custody guidelines outlined within the state’s Election Procedures Manual and our specific security procedures begin at the polling place with bipartisan teams of poll workers removing sealed affidavit envelopes (voted early ballots) from the drop box into the transport box after polls have closed. Once complete, the box is sealed with numbered tamper evident seals which are documented on the Election Night Closing Security Report and delivered by two poll workers with different party affiliations to the designated Receiving Site.

Maricopa County witnesses testified at the trial in Lake v. Hobbs, the County maintains chain of custody for every early ballot all the way through the process. [Dec. 22, 2022 Trial Transcript, at 200:18-24 (testimony of Scott Jarrett)] The Maricopa County Superior Court agreed – finding that “Maricopa County employees were observing the ballots at each stage in the process” and that Lake “brought forward no evidence sufficient to contradict this testimony.” [Minute Entry, Dec. 24, 2022, at 8-9] As the superior court found, Lake’s witness agreed that the chain of custody records exist, admitting “that Defendants did in fact generate the documents they were required to, and otherwise affirm[ing] the County’s compliance with election processes.” [Id. at 5-6]

FACTS: Maricopa County completed the statutorily required Logic & Accuracy (L&A) tests under the observation of political party observers from each party on October 11, 2022. After passing the tests, the equipment and programs were certified for use in the election.

The purpose of an L&A test is to “confirm that votes are attributed to the correct candidates and ballot measures in the election management system (EMS) and that each candidate and ballot measure receives the accurate number of votes” (Elections Procedures Manual pg. 86). Predetermined results are compared against the results of the L&A test. The equipment cannot be used in the election unless the results of the test are accurate.

Prior to the election, there are two separate L&A tests. The first is independently conducted by the Arizona Secretary of State’s Office on all central count equipment and a random sampling of accessible voting devices and precinct-based tabulators. The test, which ran 1,186 ballots through the equipment, is thoroughly described in the Elections Procedures Manual pgs. 88-95.

The second test is conducted by Maricopa County, counting 13,837 ballots, which ensures every ballot position is marked at least once. In both tests, political party observers compared the results and confirmed the equipment accurately tabulated the ballots. Find the results here.

As with all tabulation, one device does not count every ballot. Instead, the entire EMS program is tested.

In addition, prior to the L&A, the county also ran over 10,000 unique test deck ballots, an average of 24 ballots through each of the 526 precinct-based tabulators that were readied and prepared for the election, to verify that ballots could be accepted by the equipment. See the check list here.

While these tests and procedures have been in place for decades and have been providing Arizonans accurate results since their inception, it is not the only check on the tabulation equipment. Equipment is also:

Federally certified and undergoes extensive testing before it’s ok-ed for use
State certified, as outlined in law (A.R.S. 16-442) and the Elections Procedures Manual (pg. 76-86)
Secured with port blockers
Tested prior to each election to ensure the trusted build approved by the federal government is installed and not changed

FACTS: As with every election, Maricopa County performed and passed the statutorily required logic and accuracy tests for the November 2022 General Election. This included the participation of the political parties and providing the public posting requirements. No “Secret” testing occurred.

The "testing" referenced in the Lake v. Hobbs election contest was actually not testing at all, but rather the installation of new memory cards into the tabulator, which had previously been certified through the statutorily required logic and accuracy testing.

When installing the memory cards, the County tabulated a small number of ballots on each tabulator to confirm that the memory cards had been properly inserted. The process was conducted under the live stream video cameras in the County’s Ballot Tabulation Center. After the running of the test ballots, the tabulators were zeroed to ensure no votes were stored on the memory cards. The tabulators were affixed with tamper-evident seals and prepared for delivery to each Vote Center where poll workers perform a verification to ensure that there are not ballots recorded on the tabulator and that all results equal zero.

An additional false claim alleged the tabulators failed when the County reinserted the memory cards and tabulated a small number of ballots on each tabulator. This claim is based on an inaccurate interpretation of tabulator logs, which record common situations where ballots may be misread at first (such as ballots inserted slightly skewed). Tabulator logs do not indicate whether the tabulator itself is faulty; a logic and accuracy test does that.

Read the county's legal filing on this issue (starting on page 3) HERE in addition to the Election Director's sworn declaration HERE.

FACTS: The Elections Department thoroughly tested every Vote Center tabulator that would be used or that was prepared as a backup that could be used on Election Day at the 223 Vote Centers. This test included running more than 11,000 different Election Day ballot styles through the 446 Vote Center tabulators and the 54 backup tabulators.

In addition to the pre-election testing of printers, test prints are run following the set-up of a Vote Center. Technical elections personnel perform a speed check to determine that the SiteBooks are properly connected and then run test prints, printing from each SiteBook to each printer.

At a minimum, the test prints contain two envelopes, one "test successful" ballot, one Provisional Paper, and one ICX Paper (Accessible Voting Device). Staff visually inspects the test ballots, checking for flaking or speckling, and also rubs the test ballots to ensure the print is dry and doesn’t smear. At the completion of the test, elections staff spoil the ballot and places it in a secure bag identified by printer, to be returned to the MCTEC.

Finally, technical staff complete a "Site Setup: Completion Checklist" verifying the steps taken, which is then signed and dated by an Auditor.

As noted by Justice McGregor in her Ballot-on-Demand Printer investigation report, the large majority of printers performed well and produced few faulty ballots on election day. Two-thirds of the general election vote centers reported no issues with misprinted ballots; approximately 94 percent of election day ballots were not faulty.

Read more about the Ballot-on-Demand printer investigation. HERE
Maricopa County Elections Post Election Ballot-on-Demand Printer Analysis. HERE

FACTS: As commanded by the subpoena, Maricopa County provided the Senate with early ballot envelope images.

All of the ballots counted in the 2020 November General Election have been removed from their affidavit envelopes, which makes it impossible to tie the ballots back to a specific voter. Arizona's Constitution entitles every voter to a secret ballot, which is why the county puts no identifying information on a voter's ballot.

Learn More

FACTS: Our analysis of the voter rolls found no evidence of any ballot counted from a voter registered after the voter registration deadline. The courts extended the General Election voter registration deadline to October 15, 2020 at 11:59 p.m. Only voters whose forms were received by the deadline were eligible to vote in the election. Between the original Oct. 5 deadline and the court ordered extension, the county received approximately 18,529 voter registration forms. Voter registration staff completed processing the forms around October 23.

If any of the voter registration forms were incomplete or deficient, elections laws and policies require that the county put the voter on suspense. The county notified these people of the issues and ways to rectify their registration form in order to be officially added to the voter rolls. In these cases, once we receive the correct information, they are officially added to the voter rolls. State law dictates that the voter would be considered registered from the date they submitted their original registration form.

Additionally, there were approximately 7,605 provisional ballots that were cast and ultimately rejected because the voters were not eligible to vote in the election. However, there were 6,198 voters that cast provisional ballots, these were researched and found to meet the legal eligibility requirements, including that those voters were registered to vote before the registration deadline. Those ballots were counted as part of the official returns for the November General Election.

FACTS: Our review of the Nov. 7 and Dec. 2 files from 2020 found that every voter on the Dec. 2 voter file that was legally given credit for voting during the November 2020 General Election was registered by the October 15 deadline. It’s important to note that Arizona law allows provisional ballots to be processed up to 10 business days after the election. The Nov. 7 file would not have included all provisional ballot processing results.

It is common for a voter that was previously on suspense or in an inactive status to vote provisionally and cure their registration status and be added back to the official active voter rolls. Additionally, voters that cast a provisional ballots that are rejected often complete new voter registrations and appear on the voter rolls in subsequent months.

FACTS: Maricopa County has over 2.6 million registered voters and it is not unusual for there to be tens of thousands of changes to the voter rolls each month. In fact, our analysis of the actual voter registration database confirmed that there were 13,320 voters removed from the voters rolls between November 3, 2020 and January 2, 2021. The majority (7,916) of these removals were because a voter moved out of Maricopa County or passed away during this period. The remainder (5,404) were for situations such as felony convictions, adjudicated as incapacitated, or by the request of the voter to be removed from the rolls.

FACTS: Voters in Maricopa County may vote early or on Election Day. If a voter chooses to vote early, they may cast a mailed ballot or vote in person prior to Election Day. In both of these cases, the voter is casting an early ballot. For the November 2020 General Election, Maricopa County had 2,364,426 requests for an early ballot and 1,918,024 early ballots returned either by mail or voting in-person early.

The claim that Maricopa County had 74,000 more mail-in ballots than requests appears to be incorrectly calculated by comparing two files that are created during early voting, the EV32 and EV33 files. Created daily, the EV32 file is a listing of all voters that requested an early ballot on that day, while the EV33 file is a listing of all voters that returned a ballot on that day. State law requires the County prepare these daily files for the County political parties during early voting. The EV32 file must be created up until 11 days prior to Election Day, which is the last day a voter can request a ballot in the mail. The EV33 files must be created up until the day before Election Day.

Any voter who cast an early ballot in person after Oct. 23, 2020 would not be included in the EV32 file and any voter who dropped off an early ballot on Election Day would not be included in the EV33 file. Any comparison using these files to find the total number of early voters would lead to inaccurate results. The “voted file” provides the full accounting of voters that cast a ballot in Maricopa County.

FACTS: At no point during the 2020 election cycle did Maricopa County modify the rigorous signature verification requirements. Any suggestion to the contrary is categorically false.

Maricopa County follows rigorous state signature verification guidelines and staff receives training prior to elections to ensure compliance.

In June 2020, all full-time staff members that perform signature verification in Maricopa County completed a statewide signature verification certification course offered by the Associated Forensic Laboratory, LLC.

Learn More

FACTS: As commanded by the subpoena, Maricopa County provided the Senate with early ballot envelope images.

Learn More

FACTS: This is false. Maricopa County uses an air-gapped system, meaning its tabulation equipment is never connected to the internet and is completely separated from the Maricopa County network. There are no routers connected to the system and there never have been.

Two separate federally certified Voting System Testing Laboratories independently confirmed that the system is not connected to the internet. In February 2021, they tested the equipment and found no evidence of internet connectivity. The firms also confirmed that there was not any malicious software or hardware installed on the tabulation equipment.

These tests determined the tabulators were not transmitting information outside the closed air gapped system within the County tabulation center or while being delivered, returned, or used at a Vote Center.

See a network diagram of the Election Management System here.

As a best practice, we are always preparing for potential issues that could impact elections. In advance of the 2020 general election, our Information Security Department implemented additional security controls to both prevent and detect unauthorized access to our website. In conjunction with our strategic partners, on November 2, 2020 we were able to quickly detect that an individual was programmatically accessing the county’s website and accessing publicly available information. We immediately worked to stop the access and put additional security measures in place to ensure it does not happen again. No services to voters were impacted. The County’s website is in no way connected to the air-gapped system in the secure tabulation room where ballots are counted.

Learn More

Watch More

FACTS: County Election Officials program and configure the election. County staff have the expertise, passwords, and security tokens needed to program, configure, and prepare the tabulation equipment for an election. The County provided the Senate with the security token and related passwords that were used to configure the November 2020 General Election. Dominion’s administrative token and security password can be used to update the firmware on the tabulators. Any changes to the firmware must go through federal and state certification and testing. The County does not need to have access to these security protocols to conduct elections.

FACTS: Maricopa County has a robust set of security controls to prevent unauthorized access to its Election Management System (tabulation system). This includes maintaining the tabulation system and central count equipment in a secure ballot tabulation center with access controlled by badge readers. Only staff members who have a direct responsibility are provided access. The tabulation center is monitored by cameras 24 hours a day and seven days a week.

We also use a series of passwords that provide different levels of access to tabulation systems and equipment. To access each tabulator, an operator needs a series of two passwords and a security token (key). Prior to each election, we change the password that is used to access the election program and to tabulate ballots.

In addition, ballots are only tabulated when political party observers are present. The political party observers verify that the total number of ballots tabulated on each tabulator at the beginning and ending of each shift. At the end of each day, the totals are reconciled. This process independently validates that ballots are only counted when political party appointees are observing the process.

FACTS: The U.S. Election Assistance Commission’s Testing & Certification Program (Version 2.0, Section(s) 1.16, 3.42, 3.43) requires that any software and security updates to tabulation equipment must first be authorized by the tabulation vendor and thoroughly tested by certified Voting System Testing Laboratories. If Maricopa County were to implement a software or security update without it being tested and approved by the U.S. Elections Assistance Commission, the County’s tabulation equipment would lose its federal and state certification. This is not only a requirement, but it’s also a best practice prior to implementation to ensure that each update does not pose a risk to the tabulation system.

To ensure security vulnerabilities are not introduced after a tabulation system is certified, the county also maintains an air-gapped network.

FACTS: Maricopa County did not delete files when preparing the subpoenaed SQL server for delivery. The modified date of April 12, 2021 shown in images provided by the Senate’s contractors was the day the County powered down the server to prepare it for delivery to the Senate.

In a technical response, Maricopa County confirmed that the original database folder on the “EMSPrimary” server was not deleted or otherwise tampered with during packaging and delivery to fulfill the Arizona Senate’s subpoena.

There are several indicators on the R-Studio screenshot that the Senate’s contractors did not properly reconstruct the “EMSPrimary” servers RAID array. This could result in the R-Studio Data Recovery Technician program not being able to accurately translate the parameters of server’s RAID array partition schema.

Learn More

Read the technical document

FACTS: At no point were illegitimate ballots duplicated or inserted into the duplication process. To ensure ballots can be counted for voters that are in the military, temporarily overseas, vote using a large print or braille ballots, or who return a ballot too damaged to be read by a tabulator, Maricopa County duplicates these ballots. During the duplication process, the Elections Department assigns a matching serial number to both the original and duplicated ballot. This number can be used to compare the original ballot with the duplicated ballot.

The accuracy and completeness of Maricopa County’s duplication process was confirmed in court (Ward v. Jackson) where the plaintiffs randomly sampled 1,626 of the 27,000 duplicated ballots. The Arizona Supreme Court affirmed the lower court ruling, “conclude[ing], unanimously, that . . . the challenge fails to present any evidence of ‘misconduct,’ ‘illegal votes’ or that the Biden Electors ‘did not in fact receive the highest number of votes for office,’ let alone establish any degree of fraud or a sufficient error rate that would undermine the certainty of the election results.” (Ariz. S. Ct., December 9, 2020)

There may be some instances where the serial number was printed over the timing mark on the original damaged ballot. Since the duplicated ballot and not the original is tabulated, the added serial number overlapping a timing mark does not impact tabulation. When reviewing the randomly sampled duplicated ballots in Ward vs. Jackson, we were able to find and reconcile the serial numbers for all ballots reviewed.

Learn More

FACTS: Maricopa County used 80lb VoteSecur paper for every ballot (early, Election Day, provisional and accessible voting devices) in the November 2020 General Election. According to the manufacturer, the VoteSecur paper that the County used in the November 2020 General Election has no special properties that would prevent bleed through. Because ballots are designed with offset columns, ink that bleeds through the ballot does not impact tabulation.

Learn More

FACTS: Sharpies do not invalidate ballots. Leading up to the 2020 March Presidential Preference Election, the Elections Department did extensive testing on our new tabulation equipment using different types of ink and paper weight. The manufacturer also recommends Sharpies, as it provides the fastest-drying ink, a necessity on Election Day to ensure the ink dries before voters place their ballots into the tabulation equipment. If the ink smudges on tabulators, it can be a major cause of delays at voting locations. Because federal law requires counties to work to avoid long voting lines, we used the fastest drying ink on Election Day. Voters casting an early ballot may use Sharpies or ballpoint pens, since early ballots are signature verified and processed, allowing the ink plenty of time to dry before being tabulated at the Elections Department.

In addition, Maricopa County designs the ballot with offset columns, ensuring ink that bleeds through the ballot does not impact tabulation. People who voted early could use Sharpies, or other types of ink.

The Elections Department programs the tabulation equipment to accurately tabulate ballots based on the location of the ovals and the offset columns. This accuracy was verified through Logic & Accuracy tests, a hand count audit performed by the political parties, and post-election audits performed by EAC certified voting testing laboratories. This is evidence by the fact that that there were only 5,002 overvotes on the presidential contest out of 2,089,563 total ballots cast. This small percentage (.2%) is fewer than in prior elections that had a presidential contest on the ballot. When reviewing Election Day ballots, there were 233 overvotes out of 167,878 ballots. This represent an even smaller percentage at (.1%) of the total Election Day Ballots.

#SharpieGate was already debunked in court.

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FACTS: The Arizona Senate commanded the County to turn over all election equipment, ballots and other election materials through a subpoena issued on January 12, 2021. On January 15 and 21, the County provided thousands of documents including tabulator audit, administrator security, windows event logs and the cast vote records. In February, a court ruled that the subpoena was valid, and the County turned over the nearly 2.1 million General Election ballots, 385 Election Day tabulators, nine central count tabulators, and more than eight terabytes of data.

Of the 56 categories subpoenaed, Maricopa County has complied with or sought additional information for every item that was included in the Senate’s January subpoena except one: Maricopa County routers. Learn more about why here.

Find a complete accounting of the information here.

Another subpoena was issued on July 26, 2021. Find the County’s response here.

FACTS: Maricopa County used four grants in the November 2020 election, all approved in public meetings. Two grants were from non-profits, one was a state-funded grant and one was CARES funding from the federal government.

Those grants were used to fund projects and services beyond the baseline budget, which was approved by the Board of Supervisors in 2019, prior to the COVID-19 pandemic. The grants enhanced the county’s plans and did not dictate how the county would spend the funds.

Maricopa County transformed our election model to ensure we could safely and securely serve voters in the 2020 Primary and General Elections. These plans, approved well before the election, included finding voting locations that were large enough to accommodate physical distancing, increasing the number of early voting locations to give voters additional options, providing voters who traditionally vote in person information about how to vote by mail, and more.

Below are the four grants and some additional information about each one:

CARES Funding - A grant from the federal government that awarded Maricopa County $5 million. The majority of this funding was spent on purchasing PPE, renting retail space to serve as Vote Centers, renting additional space for full time and temporary early voting staff for physical distancing, bio-fogging all of our offices once a week, and teleworking equipment and additional cyber security infrastructure around teleworking.

AZVoteSafe - A grant from the Governor’s Office that awarded Maricopa County $2.2 million. We spent these funds primarily on poll worker overtime. In a traditional election, most poll workers are paid for training and Election Day. But, with the expanded election model, instead of just one day, most of our poll workers were hired for 1-3 weeks, with few days off. Because of the long hours and additional days, poll workers qualified for overtime pay.

The Center for Tech and Civic Life - A grant from a non-profit that awarded Maricopa County $3 million. Some of the budget items included:

Online training technology for poll workers
Salaries for increased temporary staff
Mileage for troubleshooters and couriers
Additional ink and toner for ballot printing at Vote Centers
Breakroom tents and generators to allow warehouse and temporary staff to physical distance during meal breaks
Additional mailers to inform voters about the voting options

USC Schwarzenegger Institute - A grant from a non-profit that awarded Maricopa County $42,000. We spent the grant on the costs associated with drive through drop box locations including:

Pop up tents
Courier salaries and mileage
Drop box worker salaries
Ballot security measures
Lighting rentals

Maricopa County is committed to providing accessible, reliable, secure, transparent, and efficient elections. The Maricopa County Elections Department and Office of the Recorder issued a report titled Correcting the Record: Maricopa County’s In-Depth Analysis of the Senate Inquiry as the final word to the Arizona Senate’s inquiry on Maricopa County’s administration of the November 2020 General Election. The in-depth analysis and review of the reports and presentations issued by the Senate’s contractors found that nearly every finding included faulty analysis, inaccurate claims, misleading conclusions, and a lack of understanding of federal and state election laws. The Senate’s election review and its contractors promoted disinformation and distrust. This report details those shortcomings and corrects the record.

Read the Report
Download the Exhibits
Get the Summary
Read the Press Release

The Maricopa County Board of Supervisors voted unanimously on January 27, 2021 to authorize a forensic audit of ballot tabulation equipment used in the 2020 elections. The audit was the culmination of a year-long effort by Maricopa County to ensure the accuracy of the federally- and state-certified hardware and software used to count votes. The firms:

Analyzed election equipment software and hardware’s hacking vulnerability. No Issues.
Verified that no malicious malware was installed. No Issues.
Tested that tabulators were not sending or receiving information over the internet. No Issues.
Confirmed that no vote switching occurred. No Issues.

Find the results

Aguilera v. Fontes – Voluntarily dismissed, November 7, 2020. Learn More
Donald J. Trump v. Hobbs — After conducting an evidentiary hearing, the Maricopa County Superior Court judge dismissed the complaint with prejudice in Min. Entry Order, November 13, 2020. Learn More
Arizona Republican Party v. Fontes — The complaint was dismissed with prejudice and the Maricopa County Superior Court judge ordered that the Secretary of State, who had requested her fees, could file a motion pursuant to AR.S. § 12-349 (the frivolous litigation statute) in Min. Entry Order, November 18, 2020. Learn More
Aguilera v. Fontes II — After conducting an evidentiary hearing, the Maricopa County Superior Court judge dismissed the case “with prejudice for failing to state a claim upon which relief can be granted; or alternatively, denying the relief sought by Plaintiffs given their failure to produce evidence demonstrating entitlement to same” in Min. Entry, November 29, 2020. Learn More
- Plaintiffs appealed. Aguilera v. Richer — The Arizona Court of Appeals ruled that the Plaintiffs did not follow “social actions” rules. It was dismissed in Ariz. Ct. App., June 15, 2021. Learn More
Kelli Ward v. Jackson — After conducting an evidentiary hearing, the Maricopa County Superior Court judge denied the relief and found that the evidence did not show fraud, misconduct, illegal votes, or an erroneous vote count. Learn More
- Plaintiffs appealed. Ward v. Jackson – The Arizona Supreme Court affirmed the lower court ruling, “conclude[ing], unanimously, that . . . . the challenge fails to present any evidence of ‘misconduct,’ ‘illegal votes’ or that the Biden Electors ‘did not in fact receive the highest number of votes for office,’ let alone establish any degree of fraud or a sufficient error rate that would undermine the certainty of the election results.” (Ariz. S. Ct., December 9, 2020). Learn More
Stevenson v. Ducey – Voluntarily dismissed, December 7, 2020. Learn More
Bowyer, et al., v. Ducey, et al. – The plaintiffs sought to decertify the election and cause Arizona’s presidential electors to be awarded to President Trump. After reviewing the information submitted by the plaintiffs, U.S. District Court of Arizona Judge Diane Humetewa dismissed the case. She ruled that the “Plaintiffs failed to provide the Court with factual support for their extraordinary claims[.]” Additionally, the court noted that “[a]llegations that find favor in the public sphere of gossip and innuendo cannot be a substitute for earnest pleadings and procedure in federal court[,]” and, “cannot be the basis for upending Arizona’s 2020 General Election.” Accordingly—because plaintiffs provided no actual, evidentiary support for their absurdly-fantastic claims, “[t]he Court is left with no alternative but to dismiss this matter in its entirety.” (Doc. 84, Order, December 9, 2020, at 28-29). Learn More
- Plaintiffs appealed. Bowyer, et al., v. Ducey, et al. – The U.S. Supreme Court denied the plaintiff’s petition for Certiorari on March 1, 2021. Learn More
- Plaintiffs appealed. Bowyer, et al., v. Ducey, et al. – The U.S. 9th Circuit Court of Appeals granted the motion to voluntarily dismiss the appeal on April 13, 2021. Learn More
Burk v. Ducey – The plaintiff in this matter raised the same claims as alleged by the plaintiffs in Bowyer, et al., v. Ducey, et al. It was dismissed on December 15, 2020. Learn More
- Plaintiffs appealed. Burk v. Ducey – The Arizona Supreme court affirmed the lower court’s decision. (Ariz. S. Ct. January 6, 2021). Learn More
- Plaintiffs appealed. Burk v. Ducey – The U.S. Supreme Court denied the plaintiff’s petition for Certiorari on May 3, 2021. Learn More

Election Day and Emergency Voting Plan & Presentation – This plan was approved by Maricopa County Board of Supervisors in September 2020. The plan includes information about wait-time management, communications, staffing, training, facilities, central count, and risk management. Find the plan and other publications here.
Early Voting Plan – This plan was approved by the Maricopa County Recorder and presented to the Board when they were considering approval of the Election Day and Emergency Voting plan in September 2020. The Early Voting plan includes information about EV processing, voting by mail, UOCAVA, Special Election Boards, Provisional Ballots.
November 2020 General Election Canvass & Presentation – The Board canvassed the election on November 20, 2020, certifying that the results were accurate and provided a full accounting of all the ballots cast in the General election.

2022 Election Plans & Presentation – These plans were approved by the Maricopa County Board of Supervisors May 1, 2022. Learn more here.
November 2022 General Election Canvass & Presentation – The Board canvassed the election on November 28, 2022, certifying that the results were accurate and provided a full accounting of all the ballots cast in the General election.

Elections Information

Just the Facts

Election Facts

1. When are elections held?

2. What types of elections are there?

3. How do I prepare for the next election?

4. What’s on my ballot?

5. If I accidentally voted for too many candidates or left a blank does this invalidate my whole ballot?

6. I am registered as an independent voter. Can I vote in the Primary Election?

7. Does Maricopa County work to hire bipartisan election workers?

8. As a student, how will registering to vote affect my financial aid?

Early Voting

1. How can I receive my ballot by mail?

2. I am away from my residence. Will my ballot be forwarded?

3. I damaged my ballot, can I get a new one?

4. When should I return my early ballot to ensure it is counted?

5. Should I put a stamp on my green envelope when I return my mail ballot?

6. Can political party affiliation be shown on early ballot envelopes?

7. What do I do if I lost my green return envelope?

8. What signature do you use to verify my ballot? What if my signature changed?

9. Can someone else pick up or drop off my early ballot?

10. What happens when my early ballot is received?

11. How do I know my early ballot was received and counted?

12. Can I vote in-person if I already requested or received a ballot in the mail?

13. How can I get an "I Voted" sticker if I vote by mail?

14. What is the Active Early Voting List and how is it different from the Permanent Early Voting List?

15. If I previously signed up to be on the Permanent Early Voting List, do I need to reapply to get on the Active Early Voting List?

16. How do I remove myself from the Active Early Voting List?

17. Is voting by mail secure?

In Person Voting

Where can I vote in person?

What ID do I need to vote in person?

Where can I get my digital Voter Registration Card?

What are provisional ballots?

What is a conditional provisional ballot?

How do you know what type of pen to use if you’re voting in person on Election Day?

What is curbside voting?

1. Can I get assistance marking my ballot?

2. Is the order of candidates on the ballot always the same?

3. If I accidentally voted for too many candidates or left a blank, does this invalidate my whole ballot?

4. What type of security measures do you have over the Ballot Tabulation Center?

5. Is the ballot counting equipment connected to the internet?

6. How do I know the ballot counting equipment is accurate?

7. What is a Precinct-Based Tabulator?

8. What is electronic adjudication?

9. How do I know if my ballot was counted?

10. Do counties hand count ballots?

11. How do you make sure people don't vote more than once?

1. How can I check my voter registration?

2. How can I register to vote?

3. Who is eligible to register to vote?

4. When should I update my existing registration?

5. What forms are required to prove citizenship when registering to vote?

6. I am registered as a Federal-Only Voter. What does this mean?

7. How long does it take for a voter registration form to be processed?

8. I just registered or updated my information. When will I get a Voter Registration Card?

9. I lost my Voter Registration Card. How can I get another?

10. I received official election mail for a voter who no longer lives at my address. What do I do?

11. I am in the military or family member, or I am living overseas. How do I register to vote?

12. I am a college student. Does my voter registration affect my residency status for college?

13. How do I cancel my voter registration?

14. How do I cancel the record of a deceased voter?

15. Do you cancel a voter registration if the voter does not vote in an election?

16. Why was my voter registration set to a status of inactive?

17. My voter registration was placed into inactive status. How can I resolve this?

Election Education Videos

Correcting the Record - 2020 General Election

Read the Report

Download the Exhibits

Read the Press Release

Election Myths

EARLY VOTING. Nearly 40,000 early ballots were illegally counted. FALSE

TABULATION. Nearly a quarter of a million ballots were rejected on Election Day. FALSE

ELECTION DAY. Files show more than 10,000 missing ballots in the 2022 General Election. FALSE

ELECTION DAY. Maricopa County failed to maintain chain of custody for early ballots on Election Day. FALSE

TABULATION. Maricopa County did not perform a Logic & Accuracy test on the tabulation equipment. FALSE

TABULATION. Maricopa County performed “secret testing” of tabulation equipment. FALSE

TABULATION: Maricopa County did not stress test its Ballot-on-Demand printers. FALSE.

VOTER REGISTRATION. Maricopa County did not provide the Senate with early ballot envelope images. FALSE

VOTER REGISTRATION. 3,981 voters were registered to vote after the deadline in violation of an Arizona Supreme Court ruling prior to the election. FALSE