Arizona Senate President Refers AG Mayes and Secretary of State Fontes to Federal Investigation Over Election Records

Arizona State Senate President Warren Petersen has formally referred Attorney General Kris Mayes and Secretary of State Adrian Fontes to the U.S. Department of Justice, accusing both state officials of obstruction of justice and witness tampering in connection with a federal grand jury investigation into the 2020 presidential election.

The referral comes after Petersen received what he characterized as threatening letters from Mayes and Fontes requesting details about voter records his office provided to federal investigators. Petersen, a Republican who is currently running for attorney general against Mayes, said he received legal advice to comply with the subpoena from the FBI regarding an investigation into the 2020 election.

Today I referred Kris Mayes and Adrian Fontes to the Department of Justice for obstruction of justice and tampering with a witness. It is disturbing to see their resistance to an election integrity investigation.

Petersen made the announcement on Tuesday, April 7, 2026, in a social media post that included a letter to U.S. Attorney Timothy Courchaine. His legal team at Snell & Wilmer had reviewed the correspondence from state officials and concluded the actions were inappropriate and potentially criminal.

The controversy centers around a federal grand jury investigation tied to records from Arizona's 2020 election and the Maricopa County audit. The FBI reportedly seized Maricopa County election data and voting records via a grand jury subpoena. The probe reportedly involves allegations from the 2024 election that Runbeck Election Services, the private company that provides ballot printing and mail-in ballot services in 31 states, allegedly commingled voted ballots with blank ballots in multiple states.

The subpoena was revealed by Republican Senate President Warren Petersen in a social media post. Following the announcement by Petersen, Arizona Attorney General Kris Mayes, a Democrat, released a statement criticizing the subpoena as a sign of the weaponization of federal law enforcement in service of crackpots and lies.

Mayes responded to the referral with a sharp statement on Wednesday, calling Petersen an election denier who continues to pursue investigations despite multiple court challenges, audits and reviews that all showed the 2020 election was conducted fairly, transparently and securely.

Warren Petersen inexplicably remains an election denier six years later. After wasting taxpayer dollars on the laughable Cyber Ninja's audit, Petersen again wasted Arizona's taxpayer dollar on a legal opinion that painstakingly tries to justify his failure to uphold Arizona's constitutional right to protect its voters' privacy.

Mayes said Petersen was desperately seeking favor from President Trump who, she argued, cannot accept that he lost his re-election in 2020 fairly and square. She added that the Trump administration was attempting to weaponize the federal grand jury process to obtain voter data after failing in court.

Secretary of State Adrian Fontes issued a statement emphasizing his office's concern for protecting personal voter information. Fontes said while Arizona State Senate continued to prioritize Donald Trump's wishes over the safety and security of Arizona's voters, he could affirm that intimidation methods would not stop their work.

My main concern for ensuring privacy of personal information in voter registration data, as required by law, remains.

Fontes explained that his office had asked for reassurance that voter information including driver's licenses and Tribal ID information were not exposed during the data sharing. He said it remained unclear what personal identifying data was made available to the Arizona State Senate and subsequently the federal government.

While Arizona voters' Drivers Licenses and Tribal ID information were not exposed, the state Senate and the federal government continue to sidestep direct questions regarding which voter information may have been made available illegally.

Petersen, who helped oversee the Senate Republicans' election review in 2020, revealed in early March that he had complied with a federal grand jury subpoena seeking all records related to a review of ballots cast by Maricopa County voters in 2020. That review affirmed Democrat Joe Biden won Arizona.

The situation follows similar developments in Georgia's Fulton County, where the Trump administration also pursued federal investigations into election records. Trump has consistently claimed that the 2020 election was stolen, despite unproven allegations of voter fraud.

Petersen's referral to the DOJ comes as he positions himself as a candidate for attorney general in the November 2026 election, directly challenging Mayes. The state's top election officials have faced increasing scrutiny from the Trump administration as it seeks to obtain voter rolls and remove voters from registration databases.

This is not about 2020. This is about laying the groundwork to deny the results of the 2026 election if they don't go their way.

Mayes emphasized that she took an oath to uphold the Constitution and defend Arizona's elections and will not be deterred from doing so regardless of political pressure. She argued that the federal government was attempting an end run around court rulings against the Trump administration's efforts to seize private voter data.

Fontes said political threats would not deter him from working to protect Arizona's voters, maintaining his office's focus on ensuring privacy of personal information in voter registration data as required by law.

The DOJ investigation into Mayes and Fontes represents a new escalation in the ongoing political conflict surrounding Arizona's 2020 election records. Both state officials have faced scrutiny from federal authorities as they attempt to balance compliance with federal subpoenas against their legal obligations to protect voter privacy.

Sources:

• Arizona State Senate President calls for DOJ investigation against Secretary Fontes | Arizona PBS https://azpbs.org/horizon/2026/04/arizona-state-senate-president-calls-for-doj-investigation-against-secretary-fontes/
• Arizona Senate President Warren Petersen Refers Democrat AG Kris Mayes and Secretary of State Adrian Fontes to DOJ for CRIMINAL Witness Tampering and Obstruction of Justice in Explosive 2020 Election Investigation | The Gateway Pundit https://www.thegatewaypundit.com/2026/04/arizona-senate-president-warren-petersen-refers-democrat-ag/
• Arizona Senate President calls on DOJ to investigate Mayes, Fontes for interfering in election investigation | 12news.com https://www.12news.com/article/news/politics/arizona-senate-president-calls-on-doj-to-investigate-mayes-fontes-for-interfering-in-election-investigation/75-c9c468b8-eabf-47a3-a3d0-017cba3399e2