PHOENIX — Abe Hamadeh has filed another lawsuit.
The Republican candidate for Arizona's attorney general said in a tweet Friday that he's contesting the November election and asking to be named the winner.
The state's attorney general race was the closest statewide competition this election cycle. The final tally placed Democrat Kris Mayes ahead of Hammadeh by 510 votes triggering a recount still underway.
Hamadeh and the Republican National Committee had filed the lawsuit on Nov. 22 against his opponent, Mayes, but it was dismissed after a judge said the lawsuit must be filed after the canvass and declaration of election results have occurred. That happened on Monday.
Hamadeh's second lawsuit is nearly identical to the first, asking for a stop to the recount, allowing people who refused provisional ballots the opportunity to cast ballots now and requiring Maricopa County to provide physical ballots. It also asks for Hamadeh to be named the winner of the race.
"At 511 votes out of 2.5 million our race is the closest statewide race in Arizona history, it is currently undergoing a recount. Every legal vote deserves to be counted," Hamadeh said in a string of tweets that accused Maricopa County of having "unprecedented and unacceptable issues" during the election.
More lawsuits
The Republican gubernatorial candidate Kari Lake filed a lawsuit last month against elections officials in Maricopa County, echoing Hamadeh and claiming election laws were violated.
Complaints listed in the suit include allegations of misprinted ballots that were not readable by voting machines, the mixing of counted and uncounted ballots, long lines at polling locations that discouraged voters from casting ballots, along with other conditions.
Lake was defeated in the election by Democrat Katie Hobbs, with Hobbs taking 50.3% of the vote while Lake received 49.7%.
According to Maricopa County election officials, a total of 60 voting locations experienced issues with the tabulators printer settings on Election Day.
In the days and weeks following the election, Maricopa County election officials aggressively batted down rumors and slanted and false claims as vote counting came under intense scrutiny.
Arizona Politics
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