Election administration has become increasingly a partisan issue in the wake of the 2020 election and an unprecedented lack of acceptance of results. The former president has claimed that the presidential election was “rigged” or “stolen;” as a result, more than half of Republican voters believe President Biden was illegitimately elected. In this hyper-partisan climate, competent incumbent election officials are likely to face well-financed challengers seeking to capitalize on conspiracy theories and disproven claims.
These primary challengers pose a significant risk to the integrity of our elections. If elected, partisan loyalists who echo false election conspiracy theories may be tempted to subvert elections, spread misinformation and deepen public distrust.
This problem demands a systemic solution. Our state election chiefs must be selected in a fair, unbiased process, buffered from partisanship, and given the power to conduct elections securely, safely, and effectively.
For more info on how we can fix this system, click here to view our report.
Candidates to watch:
Arizona: Rep. Mark Finchem
“#StopTheSteal has been instrumental in fighting the election fraud we’ve discovered!”
–via Twitter, December 5, 2020
First elected to the Arizona House in 2014, Rep. Finchem has consistently spread disinformation about the 2020 election, including claims that the election was stolen. He is affiliated with the Oath Keepers, a far-right militia group, and indicated support for the January 6, 2021 insurrection at the U.S. Capitol. On May 8, 2021, Finchem appeared on a QAnon conspiracy talk show, and is scheduled to appear at a Las Vegas QAnon conference in October 2021.
Finchem was a key player in the debunked Arizona Senate GOP’s so-called “audit” of the 2020 presidential election, and continues to maintain that President Trump won Arizona despite the contrary findings of the Trump-backed election review.
Arizona: Rep. Shawnna Bolick
“Why did instructions included with a mail-in ballot on how to fill out a ballot change from using a black ballpoint pen to having voters voting at a voting center use a sharpie?”
–via Twitter, November 6, 2020
As seen above, Rep. Bolick promoted the widely-debunked “sharpiegate” conspiracy theory days after it was reported to be false. Also worth noting is that Bolick was the primary sponsor of the controversial bill HB 2720, which would have given the legislature the ability to ignore the state’s vote total and the Secretary of State’s certification of electors in favor of the preferred candidate of its members.
California: Rachel Hamm
“[QAnon] just speaks my language. I love it.”
–via video interview, February 3, 2021
Rachel Hamm, a pro-Trump author and media personality, is seeking the Republican nomination for the position of Chief Election Official in California. Hamm is notable for her public support of QAnon conspiracy theories. Additionally, Hamm has made false claims about “2 million” inaccurately registered voters in the state of California, and has received the endorsements of Trump affiliate Roger Stone and election conspiracy theorist Mike Lindell.
Colorado: David Winney
“In the 3 days of this Cyber Symposium, the overwhelming evidence of stolen election(s) cannot be ignored.”
–via campaign website, August 18, 2021
Winney has accused incumbent Secretary of State Jena Griswold of acting illegally during the 2020 election. On his official campaign website, Winney has posted “news” from notorious sources of election disinformation, including Mike Lindell and Mark Finchem.
Georgia: Rep. Jody Hice
“Millions of Americans — myself included — feel that @realDonaldTrump was robbed of victory on Nov 3. […] For the sake of our democracy, I WILL OBJECT on Jan 6!!!”
–via Twitter, January 3, 2021
Rep. Hice, a U.S. Congressman with a history of repeating disproven election claims, has been endorsed by former U.S. President Donald Trump against current Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger. In a May 2021 appeal to Georgia voters, Hice called Raffensperger a “back-stabbing” Republican for refusing Donald Trump’s demand to overturn the results of the 2020 presidential election, claiming Raffensperger worked “arm and arm with Stacey Abrams to deliver the presidency and Senate to the radical left.” Also worth noting is that Hice was one of more than 100 lawmakers to object to the certification of the Georgia electoral vote.
Georgia: Fmr. Mayor David Belle Isle
“[Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger] certified the wrong result.”
–via interview, September 22, 2021
Belle Isle, the former mayor of Alpharetta, challenged current Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger in the 2018 election. Though Raffensperger ran a secure election, certified the correct results, and withstood immense partisan pressure, Belle Isle writes on his campaign website: “Raffensperger single-handedly bargained away our election integrity and skewered the credibility or our mail-in ballots.” One campaign ad features a depiction of Raffensperger jumping into a car with the vanity plate “VOTESTLR.”
Kansas: Commissioner Mike Brown
“Right now I’ve got my own war drum — and I’m waiting for the other side to give me reason to pound on it. And I will. Say when.”
–via Facebook, September 2020
Brown, a former commissioner from Johnson County, is running to replace incumbent Republican Secretary of State Scott Schwab in 2022. Brown has echoed unfounded concerns that the 2020 presidential election was stolen by supposed voter fraud, and has referred to the COVID-19 pandemic as a “political stunt.” Johnson lost his bid for re-election to the Johnson County Commission in 2020 after making controversial calls to take up arms during a period of racial unrest. Currently, neither Brown nor Schwab has been endorsed by former President Donald Trump.
Massachusetts: Rayla Campbell
“We’re supposed to accept these results? I think not. We don’t lay down. We rise and we will fight in court and in the streets. At every turn at every opportunity and NEVER FATIGUE.”
–via Twitter, November 2020
Campbell, a podcast host and former candidate for lieutenant governor, regularly posts anti-vaccine sentiments on Facebook and, as seen above, was unwilling to accept the results of the 2020 election. During a prior campaign, Campbell was also photographed wearing clothing bearing a QAnon slogan.
Michigan: Kristina Karamo
“States like Michigan maintain insecure election systems having been exploited by those who stole the last election from the electorate having reelected President Trump.”
–via Official Campaign Website, May 2021
A college professor and frequent guest on conservative media panels, Karamo continues to insist that results in Antrim County, Michigan were fraudulent, despite the fact that audits proved otherwise. Karamo has spent weeks fighting the results of the 2020 election, and still maintains that President Trump won the state (and the election generally), even going so far as to file to intervene in a court case which sought to overturn electoral college results in Michigan, Wisconsin, Pennsylvania, and Georgia. In October of 2021, Karamo announced that she would be speaking at a QAnon conference event in Las Vegas.
Nevada: Jim Marchant
“We stand with you, President Trump, 100%. No election can be counted if fraud/cheating is involved. The evidence stacks up a mile high.”
–via Twitter, December 22, 2020
Former Nevada Assemblyman Jim Marchant is running to fill the open seat left by outgoing, term-limited Secretary of State Barbara Cegavske. Marchant has repeated disproven claims about the veracity of the 2020 election, and though he conceded defeat in his own 2020 run for congress, still asserts that “some shenanigans” were involved in his loss, and that both his race and former President Trump’s were “stolen.” Marchant claims to have been approached by Trump allies personally to run for Secretary of State, and appeared with conspiracy theorist Mike Lindell at a speaking event. Marchant is also scheduled to appear at a QAnon convention in October of 2021.
New Mexico: Audrey Trujillo
“Until we get a handle on the voter fraud in NM, all election are going to continue to be rigged. Why run? Run to lose? Thoughts anyone?
–via Twitter, March 21, 2021
Ohio: Former State Rep. John Adams
“I’d stay with the fact that there were shenanigans that went on in [the 2020] election and there are questions that have not been resolved yet.”
–via interview, August 23, 2021
Former Ohio State Rep John Adams is running in the Republican primary against incumbent Republican Secretary of State Frank LaRose. Adams has expressed doubts about the legitimacy of the 2020 presidential election, despite the fact that conspiracy theories about voter fraud have been debunked. That Adams refers to such “shenanigans” as “fact” alone is cause for concern.
Former candidates:
Minnesota: Phillip Parrish (Exited Race 10.22.21)
“The fact that big tech, weaponized government agencies, and thugs (Chinese Communist Party) are doing everything humanly possible to shut down Mike Lindell, the Cyber Symposium, and all platforms or persons trying to get we the people the truth, demonstrates we are telling the truth!”
–via Facebook, August 10, 2021
A former Navy intelligence officer, Parrish has made unsuccessful bids for governor, senator, and Republican Party chair in Minnesota. As seen above, Parrish is a sympathizer of conspiracy theorist Mike Lindell, whose allegations of fraud have been repeatedly disproven. Parish has repeatedly claimed fraud was involved in the outcomes of the 2020 election, not only for president, but across Minnesota. Parrish has also made pleas for the public to “not comply” with the “COVID scam” and has made insinuations that the Democrats are involved with human trafficking and/or the creation of COVID-19, both QAnon talking points.
