Arizona Republicans, Led by Kari Lake, Demand DOJ Investigation into Maricopa County’s 2020 Election ‘Sabotage’ Amid Georgia FBI Raid

Prominent Arizona Republican officials, including former gubernatorial candidate Kari Lake, have signaled that Maricopa County’s administration of the 2020 presidential election should be the focus of federal scrutiny amid Fulton County’s FBI raid.

The renewed calls in Arizona come as federal agents executed a court-authorized search warrant at the Fulton County, Georgia, election office on January 28, 2026, seizing approximately 700 boxes of 2020 election ballots and related records as part of an ongoing inquiry into election-related matters, as reported by The Associated Press. The AP reported that the seizure follows an October 6 subpoena requesting “all used and void ballots, stubs of all ballots, signature envelopes, and corresponding envelope digital files from the 2020 General Election in Fulton County,” which the county failed to respond to, per the Department of Justice.

In 2020, Joe Biden won Maricopa County by about 6,000 votes, of the more than 2 million votes cast. Statewide, Biden won by less than 12,000 votes out of more than 3.3 million cast. In 2022, Kari Lake lost her GOP gubernatorial bid against Katie Hobbs by approximately 17,000 votes, or less than one percent of votes cast.

In a post on X, Lake suggested that federal authorities should investigate Maricopa County’s 2020 election processes, renewing calls for scrutiny in one of the state’s most closely watched election jurisdictions. The X post was circulated late last week, though no formal federal investigation has been publicly announced as a result of the message. 

Lake wrote, “The landslide crushing defeat of Katie Hobbs was unavoidable, so they sabotaged Election Day voting in Arizona–preventing people from voting and having their votes counted. This is what they do when We the People rise up and turn out. They shut down the voting. ALL Americans should be DEMANDING a total reform in our election systems immediately.”

The landslide crushing defeat of Katie Hobbs was unavoidable, so they sabotaged Election Day voting in Arizona–preventing people from voting and having their votes counted.

This is what they do when We the People rise up and turn out. They shut down the voting.

ALL Americans… https://t.co/YYHSCEAO5B

— Kari Lake (@KariLake) January 28, 2026

Lake has been a leading proponent of claims that the 2020 election was stolen from Donald Trump. She and other allies have repeatedly cast doubt on the integrity of the vote count in Maricopa County, despite several legal setbacks. 

Commenting on a report from Arizona journalist Rachel Alexander on January 24, Lake asked, “Why were establishment AZ Republicans so adverse to digging into our elections and making sure they are safe and secure? Makes you wonder if some of our former establishment Republican leaders were part of the systemic fraud…”

Although Lake has remained politically active following her campaigns, she has continued to contest the electoral integrity of Arizona, and the U.S. more broadly, echoing President Donald Trump’s claims that the 2020 election was “rigged.”

RIGGED ELECTION! https://t.co/HCrZPbpdvV

— Kari Lake (@KariLake) January 29, 2026

The calls for a federal investigation come as election administration in Maricopa County remains the subject of an ongoing internal dispute. 

County Recorder Justin Heap, a Republican elected in 2024, has been engaged in a public and legal conflict with the Maricopa County Board of Supervisors over control of election administration, staffing, and resources. Heap has argued that the Board has stripped his office of personnel and technology required to carry out statutory election duties and has filed suit seeking to reclaim that authority. The Board has disputed Heap’s claims, and a Maricopa County judge recently declined to immediately block a Board-ordered audit, according to KJZZ, leaving the dispute unresolved.

After the 2020 election, Republicans in the Arizona Senate ordered an extensive review of Maricopa County’s ballots and equipment. The controversial 2021 audit, led by outside contractors, reportedly found no evidence of fraud and was widely criticized for its methodology and lack of independent oversight. Federal and county election officials have also confirmed that statewide and county audits did not reveal issues that would affect the certified outcome.

Lake’s campaign previously challenged the 2022 Arizona gubernatorial election results, which included Maricopa County returns, in court. Judges at multiple levels, including the Arizona Superior Court and Court of Appeals, dismissed the majority of her legal claims for lack of evidence, finding that the election results reflected the votes cast.

Lake responded to comments about her previous legal cases in a reply on X: 

“Hard to get justice when the district, county, state supreme, and federal courts are corrupt. Trust me. I’ve been there. Paid $100s of thousands to see judges owned by the deep-state. We are screwed.“

Hard to get justice when the district, county, state supreme and federal courts are corrupt. Trust me. I've been there. Paid $100s of thousands to see judges owned by the deep-state. We are screwed.

— Kari Lake (@KariLake) January 28, 2026

Calls for federal scrutiny come as Maricopa County remains one of the most populous and politically significant jurisdictions in the United States, with elections that attract intense media and public attention. County election officials have defended their procedures and outcomes in the face of persistent challenges from GOP figures and outside commentators.

How much sweating do you think Adrian Fontes, Katie Hobbs, Stephen Richer, Bill Gates, Clint Hickman, and the rest of the Maricopa County goons guilty of stealing the 2020 and 2022 elections are doing right now after what’s currently happening in GA?

It’s way past time for…

— AZ Representative Rachel (Jones) Keshel (@RJ4arizona) January 29, 2026

Referencing those developments in Georgia, Arizona Representative Rachel Keshel (R-LD17) commented on the renewed scrutiny of the 2020 election in a post to X on Wednesday. She wrote, “How much sweating do you think Adrian Fontes, Katie Hobbs, Stephen Richer, Bill Gates, Clint Hickman, and the rest of the Maricopa County goons guilty of stealing the 2020 and 2022 elections are doing right now after what’s currently happening in GA? It’s way past time for justice.”

Just days before the FBI operation in Fulton County, President Trump warned in his speech at Davos, Switzerland, that “people will soon be prosecuted for what they did.”

🚨 BREAKING: President Trump announces PROSECUTIONS are about to commence over the "rigged" 2020 presidential election

HERE WE GO. 🔥

"People will soon be prosecuted for what they did. It's probably breaking news, but it should be! It was a RIGGED ELECTION." pic.twitter.com/mMpJ3f4u8v

— Eric Daugherty (@EricLDaugh) January 21, 2026

As of this report, no federal investigation has been confirmed into Maricopa County’s handling of the 2020 presidential election.