Expert panel to discuss Arizona election integrity

Arizona remains in the center of national headlines following the 2020 election, exposing the tension between two competing interests: access and accuracy. New laws aimed at reforming the voting process have been proposed and implemented at the federal and state level. As the debate rages on over ballot access and election integrity, Americans of all stripes are curious about how the election system works and what problems exist.

On November 9, elections expert Dr. John Fortier, along with state and local officials will explore Arizona’s election system and opportunities for reform. Dr. Fortier is a senior fellow at the American Enterprise Institute and is the co-author of “Lessons Learned from the 2020 Election,” a special report made for the U.S. Elections Assistance Commission.

“Studying elections at the American Enterprise Institute, I’ve had the opportunity to explore this issue from a national level,” Fortier said. “The 2020 presidential election had record voter turnout across the board, including record turnout by mail. People care that their votes count, and they deserve to understand their election system. I commend the Arizona Junior Fellows and ASU SCETL for bringing about this thoughtful discussion on how to ensure voter access and build a trustworthy elections system.”

Fortier will be joined by respected and experienced state and local experts, including Hon. Kirk Adams, former Speaker of the Arizona House of Representatives and chief of staff to Gov. Doug Ducey; and, Hon. Lisa Marra, president of the Election Officials Association of Arizona and the elections director for Cochise County. The discussion will be moderated by Hon. Eileen Klein, former state treasurer of Arizona and president emerita of the Arizona Board of Regents.

“As a local elections official, nothing is more important than upholding elections laws and protecting people’s right to vote,” Marra said. “I look forward to talking about ways to ensure Arizonans can have confidence in their elections system.”

The event is the second in the series “The Future of Arizona Democracy” produced by the Arizona Junior Fellows, a project of the Arizona Chamber Foundation in partnership with the School of Civic and Economic Thought and Leadership at Arizona State University.

The event is free and open to the public.