**Arizona Attorney General Announces Plea Deal in Election Interference Case**

Arizona Attorney General Kris Mayes has revealed a plea agreement in an election interference case involving Cochise County supervisor Peggy Judd. On Monday, Judd pled guilty to a class 3 misdemeanor charge of failing to perform her duties as an election officer by not certifying the 2022 election as required by law.

"Any attempt to interfere with elections in Arizona will not be tolerated," Mayes stated in a news release. She emphasized that the plea agreement underscores her commitment to using all available tools to maintain the integrity of Arizona's electoral system and hold those accountable who seek to undermine it.

Intense pressure from voters in Cochise County, a strongly Republican area, played a significant role in Judd and fellow supervisor Terry "Tom" Crosby's actions. Roused by claims of election fraud from former President Donald Trump, Judd and Crosby questioned the reliability of vote-counting machines. In October 2022, Judd and Crosby pushed for a hand-count of all 12,000 Election Day ballots and approximately 32,000 early ballots, a move that was eventually blocked by a Pima County Superior Court judge who ruled that the board had exceeded its legal authority.

Despite the ruling, Judd and Crosby voted against certifying the election results, thus jeopardizing the inclusion of 47,000 votes from Cochise County. Near the end of November 2022, they were indicted by a grand jury on felony charges of conspiracy and interference with an election officer. Soon after, the board of supervisors approved the election results just before they were set to be certified at the state level.

As part of the plea deal, Judd will be placed on unsupervised probation for a minimum of 90 days and is required to pay a $500 fine.