PHOENIX (AP) 鈥 An Arizona grand jury has indicted former President Donald Trump 's chief of staff Mark Meadows, lawyer Rudy Giuliani and 16 others for their roles in an attempt to overturn Trump鈥檚 loss to Joe Biden in the 2020 election.
The indictment released Wednesday names 11 Republicans who submitted a document to Congress falsely declaring that Trump won Arizona in 2020. They include the former state party chair, a 2022 U.S. Senate candidate and two sitting state lawmakers, who are charged with nine counts each of conspiracy, fraud and forgery.
The identities of seven other defendants, including Giuliani and Meadows, were not immediately released because they had not yet been served with the documents. They were readily identifiable based on descriptions of the defendants, however.
Trump himself was not charged but was referred to as an unindicted co-conspirator.
With the indictments, Arizona becomes the fourth state where allies of the former president have been charged with using false or unproven claims about voter fraud related to the election. Heading into a likely November rematch with Biden, Trump continues to spread lies about the last election that are echoed by many of his supporters.
鈥淚 will not allow American democracy to be undermined,鈥 Democratic state Attorney General Kris Mayes said in a video released by her office. 鈥淚t鈥檚 too important.鈥
The indictment alludes to Giuliani as an attorney 鈥渨ho was often identified as the Mayor鈥 and spread false allegations of election fraud. Another defendant is referred to as Trump鈥檚 鈥 ,鈥 which describes Meadows.
Descriptions of other unnamed defendants point to Mike Roman, who was Trump鈥檚 director of Election Day operations; John Eastman, a lawyer who devised a strategy to try to persuade Congress not to certify the election; and Christina Bobb, a lawyer who worked with Giuliani.
A lawyer for Eastman, Charles Burnham, said his client is innocent. Bobb did not respond to a text message seeking comment, nor did a lawyer who is representing Roman in a case in Georgia.
George Terwilliger, a lawyer representing Meadows, said he had not yet seen the indictment but if Meadows is named, 鈥渋t is a blatantly political and politicized accusation and will be contested and defeated.鈥 Giuliani's political adviser, Ted Goodman, decried what he called 鈥渢he continued weaponization of our justice system.鈥
The 11 people who had been nominated to be Arizona鈥檚 Republican electors met in Phoenix on Dec. 14, 2020, to sign a certificate saying they were 鈥渄uly elected and qualified鈥 electors and claiming that Trump carried the state. of the signing ceremony was posted on social media by the Arizona Republican Party at the time. The document was later sent to Congress and the 好色tv Archives, where it was ignored.
Biden won Arizona by more than 10,000 votes. Of the that unsuccessfully challenged Biden鈥檚 victory in the state, one was filed by the 11 Republicans.
Their lawsuit asked a judge to de-certify the results that gave Biden his victory in Arizona and block the state from sending them to the Electoral College. In dismissing the case, U.S. District Judge Diane Humetewa said the Republicans lacked legal standing, waited too long to bring their case and 鈥渇ailed to provide the court with factual support for their extraordinary claims.鈥
Days after that lawsuit was dismissed, the 11 participated in the certificate signing.
The Arizona charges come after a string of indictments against fake electors in other states.
In December, a on felony charges of offering a false instrument for filing and uttering a forged instrument in connection with false election certificates. They have .
Michigan鈥檚 Attorney General in July that included forgery and conspiracy to commit election forgery against 16 Republican fake electors. One had charges dropped after reaching a cooperation deal, and the 15 remaining defendants have .
Three fake electors also have been charged in Georgia and others in a sweeping indictment accusing them of participating in a wide-ranging scheme to illegally overturn the results. They have .
In Wisconsin, 10 Republicans who posed as electors , admitting their actions were part of an effort to overturn Biden鈥檚 victory. There is .
Trump was in federal court over efforts to cling to power after his defeat, . The U.S. Supreme Court on Thursday will hear arguments on his claim in that case that he can't be prosecuted for acts he committed while serving as president.
In early January, New Mexico Attorney General Ra煤l Torrez said that state鈥檚 five Republican electors cannot be prosecuted under the current law. In New Mexico and Pennsylvania, fake electors added a caveat saying the election certificate was submitted in case they were later recognized as duly elected, qualified electors. No charges have been filed in Pennsylvania.
In Arizona, Mayes鈥 predecessor, Republican Mark Brnovich, conducted an investigation of the 2020 election, but the fake elector allegations were not part of that examination, according to Mayes鈥 office.
The so-called fake electors facing charges are Kelli Ward, the state GOP鈥檚 chair from 2019 until early 2023; state Sen. Jake Hoffman; Tyler Bowyer, an executive of the conservative youth organization Turning Point USA who serves on the Republican 好色tv Committee; state Sen. Anthony Kern, who was photographed in restricted areas outside the U.S. Capitol during the Jan. 6 attack and is now a candidate in Arizona鈥檚 8th Congressional District; Greg Safsten, a former executive director of the Arizona Republican Party; energy industry executive James Lamon, who lost a 2022 Republican primary for a U.S. Senate seat; Robert Montgomery, chairman of the Cochise County Republican Committee in 2020; Samuel Moorhead, a Republican precinct committee member in Gila County; Nancy Cottle, who in 2020 was the first vice president of the Arizona Federation of Republican Women; Loraine Pellegrino, past president of the Ahwatukee Republican Women; and Michael Ward, an osteopathic physician who is married to Kelli Ward.
In a statement, Hoffman accused Mayes of weaponizing the attorney general鈥檚 office in bringing the case but didn鈥檛 directly comment on the indictment鈥檚 allegations.
鈥淟et me be unequivocal, I am innocent of any crime, I will vigorously defend myself, and I look forward to the day when I am vindicated of this naked political persecution by the judicial process,鈥 Hoffman said.
None of the others responded to either phone, email or social media messages from The Associated Press seeking comment.
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Associated Press writers Gabe Stern and Scott Sonner in Las Vegas, Kate Brumback in Atlanta and Marc Levy in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, contributed to this report.
