The resignation of Cochise County’s Elections Director just three months before a critical county-wide election has left county officials with limited options, and those options are not being aided by incorrect information that was put forth in a meeting on Tuesday.
During a Feb. 14 meeting, the county’s three board supervisors discussed at length a plan that would move responsibility for most of the Elections Director’s duties to County Recorder David Stevens, at least temporarily. Those duties would be transferred to Stevens under a contractual process called an Intergovernmental Agreement (IGA).
At one point early in the meeting, Supervisor Ann English stated that none of Arizona’s other 14 counties have such an arrangement.
“Counties have tried this in the past and there is not a single county in Arizona that has the elections under the recorder,” English said to Supervisor Peggy Judd, who supports the shift of duties to Stevens.
However, English’s comment was incorrect.
Yuma County has its Interim Elections Director under the direct supervision of County Recorder Richard Colwell. It too is a fact readily verifiable on that county’s website as well as by Yuma County officials.
And until just 45 days ago, the Coconino County board of supervisors had entered into multiple IGAs with its various County Recorders since 1997 to combine “all election-related functions” in an effort to promote “economy, efficiency, and public confidence.”
Then there is Maricopa County, which until 2019 had all county elections responsibilities assigned the County Recorder for the prior 65 years. Since 2019, Maricopa County has had two county employees with the title of Elections Director – one is under the direct control of the Maricopa County Board of Supervisors, while the other reports to the County Recorder.
English’s inaccurate comment went unchallenged by Judd or Supervisor Tom Crosby. Also unchallenged was a public comment that Stevens does not hold a certification as a Certified Elections Registration Administrator (CERA).
However, Stevens has already completed the CERA coursework and is awaiting his certificate, which public records easily substantiate. He has also been a State-certified elections officer for years.
If a new elections director is not hired in the next two week or an IGA is not approved by then, the county’s long awaited May 16 election about funding a new jail could be postponed.
One reason is that the sole employee of the Elections Department has not yet completed the CERA program nor is the employee certified by the State of Arizona as an election official. Meanwhile, Stevens as well as his Chief Deputy are both State certified and have completed the CERA coursework.
In addition, like all county recorders, Stevens is already legally responsible under Title 16 of the Arizona Revised Statutes for vast majority of the pre-election day election process, including voter registration.
He is also statutorily responsible for early voting -including mailing out ballots- and verifying the voter’s affidavit signature when those ballots are submitted. Recorders also determine if provisional ballots cast on election day are accepted or not.
Public records show more than 80 percent of the ballots cast in Cochise County’s November 2022 General Election came through Stevens’ office before being forwarded to Marra’s office to be tabulated.
In response to English’s inaccurate statement, Stevens sought a public correction from Cochise County Administrator Richard Karwaczka. The county’s public information officer, Jane Montgomery, advised Arizona Daily Independent on Wednesday that she would not be issuing such a statement and would instead “defer to” other county officials who could comment directly on the matter.
No response was received as of press time.
Stevens would not receive more pay for the additional responsibilities, as his salary like all county recorders is set by state law. He points to the long awaited vote on funding a new jail as a critical election that should not be cancelled unless there is absolutely no other option.
“We are in a crisis mode due to the jail district election,” Stevens said. “I have promised to help in whatever manner the supervisors need me to.”
EDITOR’S NOTE: The article has been updated to clarify Stevens’ status as a State of Arizona certified elections official.