Arizona Officials Braced for FBI Raid on Election Records, Emails Show

Newly released internal emails show that Arizona Secretary of State Adrian Fontes’ office was actively preparing for a potential FBI raid on election records in late January, just days after federal agents executed a search warrant at Fulton County, Georgia’s election office tied to the 2020 presidential election.

The emails, obtained via public records request by American Oversight and first reported by the Washington Examiner, reveal that Arizona State Election Director Lisa Marra alerted county election officials across the state on Jan. 28 that the Secretary’s Office was “taking steps to be prepared if something similar happens in Arizona.” Marra linked to news of the Georgia raid and emphasized support for counties facing records requests or retention issues while stating officials were “monitoring this situation closely.” 

In Maricopa County, the state’s largest and most scrutinized jurisdiction for election administration, Elections Director Scott Jarrett followed up in a Feb. 12 email instructing staff to “stay calm and professional” if federal agents arrived, cooperate fully, grant access as requested, and notify leadership immediately – without obstructing or recording the activity.

Fontes’ office did not respond to requests for comment on the newly released emails. Marra also declined comment to the Washington Examiner.

The revelations come as Arizona continues to face intense federal scrutiny over its election processes, including a DOJ lawsuit against Fontes for allegedly failing to maintain accurate voter rolls and a separate grand jury investigation in Phoenix.

Fontes – a Democrat who previously served as Maricopa County Recorder – has been at the center of multiple election integrity battles. In “DOJ Sues Arizona Secretary of State for Refusing to Clean Voter Rolls,” we detailed the Civil Rights Division’s legal action after Fontes rejected federal demands for voter data access and preservation of records dating back to 2020. 

Republicans and election watchdogs have long cited persistent problems in Maricopa County, including signature verification lapses on mail ballots, chain-of-custody gaps at drop boxes, voter registration data mismatches, and delays in releasing election data – issues first thrust into the spotlight after the 2020 race and the subsequent 2021 Arizona Senate forensic audit of Maricopa County ballots. 

Maricopa County Recorder Justin Heap, a Republican, has publicly committed his office to full cooperation with federal authorities while flagging internal record retention concerns that could expose the county to legal risks in ongoing litigation and public records demands.

Despite the apparent anticipation of a raid similar to Georgia’s, no such physical search warrant was executed in Arizona. Instead, federal investigators obtained materials through subpoenas last month, and the Arizona Senate – led by President Warren Petersen – voluntarily turned over records from the 2021 audit, including ballot images.

“The FBI has the records,” Petersen stated at the time. 

This cooperative approach stands in contrast to continued resistance from Democratic officials. In a separate California Globe report, Arizona Attorney General Kris Mayes and Fontes urged county clerks to defy certain federal subpoenas related to voter data, with language instructing them to “decline any such illegal demands.”  

Additional coverage exposed further red flags: Recorder Heap publicly identified 60 non-citizen voters on the rolls as part of a citizenship audit, drawing a scathing rebuke of Arizona’s election failures from DHS Secretary Kristi Noem. GOP lawmakers have also presented evidence of widespread voter roll “anomalies” and prepared federal criminal referrals tied to these issues. 

Arizona Republicans, including then-candidate Kari Lake, previously demanded a full DOJ investigation into Maricopa County’s 2020 election processes in direct response to the Georgia FBI action, citing what they described as potential “sabotage” and long-standing procedural failures traceable to Fontes’ tenure as Recorder.

As federal probes deepen – including a grand jury in Phoenix and ongoing litigation over voter roll maintenance – the emails raise fresh questions about what, exactly, Arizona’s top election officials anticipated and why proactive “preparation” was deemed necessary in the wake of Georgia’s experience.