PINAL COUNTY, Ariz. — An investigation into claims made by an elected official concluded that no evidence was found to indicate Pinal County's primary election data was "manipulated."
County Supervisor Kevin Cavanaugh, who lost the GOP nomination for county sheriff to Ross Teeple by more than 15,000 votes, made allegations following the primary election suggesting "abnormalities" may have occurred.
As a result of the claims, the Snell & Wilmer law firm was retained to help conduct an independent review of Pinal County's primary election.
In a report released this week, the law firm said it could not verify Cavanaugh's claims after evaluating the county's election records.
"It is our opinion that the July 2024 Primary Election in Pinal County was free of fraud, manipulation, or any other issue that would call its results into question," the report states.
During a meeting on Wednesday that Cavanaugh was absent from, the county's supervisors said they hope the report's findings will help restore the public's faith in local elections. The five-member board of supervisors currently consists of all Republicans.
Pinal County, home to about 460,000 residents, experienced a debacle during the 2022 primary election when one-fourth of the county's polling places reportedly ran out of ballots.
RELATED: Pinal County attorney says misconduct allegations against elections director can't be substantiated
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