Lake's trial to be named governor lacks 1st day bombshells

PHOENIX (AP) — Since her loss in the Arizona governor’s race, Republican Kari Lake has claimed the election was stolen and promised bombshells showing she was the rightful winner. But on the first day of trial in her election challenge Wednesday, her lawyers alleged small-bore problems that didn't appear to show the widespread, intentional misconduct she would need to prove.

Lawyers for the former television anchor, who lost to Democrat Katie Hobbs by more than 17,000 votes, are focusing on problems with ballot printers at some polling places in Maricopa County, home to more than 60% of voters. The defective printers produced ballots that were too light to be read by the on-site tabulators at polling places. Lines backed up in some areas amid the confusion.

County officials say everyone had a chance to vote and all ballots were counted since ballots affected by the printers were taken to more sophisticated counters at the elections department headquarters.

Lake’s attorneys also claim the chain of custody for ballots was broken at an off-site facility, where a contractor scans mail ballots to prepare them for processing. They claim workers at the facility put their own mail ballots into the pile, rather than returning them through normal channels, and also that paperwork documenting the transfer of ballots was missing. The county disputes the claim.

Lake was among the most vocal 2022 Republicans promoting former President Donald Trump’s election lies, which she made the centerpiece of her campaign. While most of the other election deniers around the country conceded after losing their races in November, Lake has not. Instead she is asking the judge to either declare her the winner or order a revote in Maricopa County.

She faces extremely long odds in her challenge,...