Arizona Secretary of State Katie Hobbs to host election education campaign, town halls

PHOENIX — Arizona Secretary of State Katie Hobbs announced Tuesday she is joining a nationwide education campaign to build trust in election officials.

Hobbs is part of the #TrustedInfo initiative, which is put together by the National Association of Secretaries of State and its nearly 40 members made up of Republican and Democrat chief election officials across the country.

The mission of the initiative, which launched in 2019, is directing voters to election officials’ websites and verified social media pages to increase voter confidence and reduce misinformation and disinformation, according to the official website.

Hobbs added several town halls would also be held ahead of the midterms to answer questions and provide updates from her office.

“As we head into the 2022 midterm elections, we know that the campaigns of misinformation will continue to propagate as they did in 2020,” Hobbs said in a press release.

“That’s why it’s important that voters understand that election officials are their main source for accurate information.”

No dates were announced for when the town halls would take place.

Hobbs said her office would also be highlighting election officials throughout the 2022 election cycle as part of the education effort.

The primary election takes place Aug. 2 before the general election on Nov. 8.

Among the positions on the ballot this year are Arizona’s governor, which Hobbs is running for, along with secretary of state, attorney general and one of the state’s two U.S. Senate seats.

Hobbs said Arizona.Vote, run by the Secretary of State’s office, will be continuously updated throughout the year with information about the election process.

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