Defendant in Arizona fake elector case flips, agrees to cooperate with prosecutors

PHOENIX – One of the 18 defendants in the Arizona fake elector case has flipped, agreeing to cooperate with prosecutors, state Attorney General Kris Mayes announced Monday.

Jenna Ellis, a former attorney for Donald Trump, is the first defendant in the high-profile case to reach such a deal.

Mayes said she was grateful to Ellis and called the deal “a win for the rule of law.”

Ellis was accused of helping orchestrate a plot to overturn Trump’s 2020 reelection loss to Joe Biden.

In April of this year, a grand jury indicted seven Trump advisors and 11 alleged fake electors on nine felony fraud, conspiracy and forgery charges. Trump was not charged in the case but was referred to as an unindicted co-conspirator in the indictment.

All of the defendants, including Ellis, previously pleaded not guilty in the case.

On Monday, Mayes filed a motion to dismiss the charges against Ellis in exchange for her cooperation. Prosecutors can refile charges if she doesn’t comply with the terms of the deal.

“This agreement represents a significant step forward in our case,” Mayes said in a press release. “I am grateful to Ms. Ellis for her cooperation with our investigation and prosecution. Her insights are invaluable and will greatly aid the State in proving its case in court. As I stated when the initial charges were announced, I will not allow American democracy to be undermined – it is far too important. Today’s announcement is a win for the rule of law.”

What are Arizona fake elector defendants accused of?

The allegations date back to when Republicans in Arizona and six other states that Trump lost signed fake Electoral College certificates in a failed scheme to keep Trump in office.

The alleged fake electors — Kelli Ward, Tyler Bowyer, Nancy Cottle, Jake Hoffman, Anthony Kern, Jim Lamon, Robert Montgomery, Samuel Moorhead, Lorraine Pellegrino, Gregory Safsten and Michael Ward — gathered on Dec. 14, 2020, and signed documents falsely claiming they were “duly elected and qualified electors.”

The Signing. pic.twitter.com/6gPsfqrk7T

— Republican Party of Arizona (@AZGOP) December 14, 2020

At the time, Ward was chair of the Arizona Republican Party, which posted video of the signing to social media. Hoffman and Kern are currently state senators. Hoffman won his GOP primary race last week as he seeks reelection, and Kern will be out of office at the end of the year after falling short in a congressional primary.

The Trump advisors who still face charges — former chief of staff Mark Meadows; attorneys Rudy Giuliani, Boris Epshteyn, John Eastman and Christina Bobb; and former campaign aide Mike Roman — are accused of enabling the plot.

Prosecutors in Michigan, Nevada, Georgia and Wisconsin have also filed criminal charges related to similar fake elector schemes.

In October, Ellis pleaded guilty to one felony count of aiding and abetting false statements and writings in the Georgia case. She was barred from practicing law in Colorado for three years after her guilty plea in Georgia.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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