Maricopa County board leader explains objection to judge’s ruling in recorder’s election lawsuit

PHOENIX – The leader of the Maricopa County Board of Supervisors said Thursday that a state judge’s long-awaited ruling failed to clear up confusion about election responsibilities and shouldn’t be enforced.

“It’s a total bust. … There are just so many fatal errors,” Chairwoman Kate Brophy McGee told KTAR News 92.3 FM’s The Mike Broomhead Show a day after the metro Phoenix governing board voted to continue defending itself in a lawsuit filed by Recorder Justin Heap last year.

Heap sued the Maricopa County Board of Supervisors in June 2025, several months after taking office. The dispute over election responsibilities could not be resolved outside the legal system even though Heap and four of the five supervisors are Republicans.

Maricopa County board moves to block judge’s order

Last week, Judge Scott Blaney issued a ruling that was mostly in Heap’s favor.

“One good part of the ruling is that the judge acknowledged that the board has ultimate financial say over the county and its operations, including Mr. Heap’s office,” Brophy McGee said. “But then, he turns around in another part of the ruling and mandates that we spend millions of dollars related to IT. There is no clarity. There is confusion.”

The Maricopa County board voted 4-1 on Wednesday to seek a stay of Blaney’s decision and file an appeal if the stay is rejected. Brophy McGee said the goal is to put off potential upheaval of the election process in Arizona’s largest county until after the midterm cycle. The state’s primaries are July 21, and the general election is Nov. 4.

“We’re asking him for the stay, and for me the basic reason is we’re in the middle of an election,” Brophy McGee said. “Let’s not confuse the voters. We’ve managed to conduct five smaller elections over the last year and four months. Let’s finish out these elections and figure it from there.”

Did Maricopa County board overstep its authority?

Heap maintained in his lawsuit that the board exceeded its authority by taking funding, IT staff and some key functions — including managing ballot drop boxes and establishing early voting sites — away from his office through an agreement negotiated with the previous recorder, Stephen Richer.

For the most part, Blaney agreed with Heap’s argument. He ordered the board to return “the IT staff, servers, databases, software, websites, and equipment that were in the Recorder’s custody and/or control prior to October of 2024.”

The ruling also enjoined the board from taking over any function delegated to the recorder under state law without consent.

However, Brophy McGee said Blaney’s ruling leaves too many unresolved issues to accept.

“There is no clarity. There is confusion. There is further potential for conflict, and we have to get this figured out, and the appellate court exists for a reason, and it exists because this ruling is, in fact … a total bust. I’m so disappointed,” she said.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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