An Arizona grand jury has indicted 18 allies of Donald Trump for their involvement in efforts to subvert the 2020 election, including former White House chief of staff Mark Meadows and attorneys Rudy Giuliani and Boris Epshteyn. The indictment, which includes felony counts of conspiracy, fraud, and forgery, also refers to Trump as an unindicted co-conspirator. The indictment states that the defendants and co-conspirators schemed to prevent the lawful transfer of the presidency in order to keep Trump in office against the will of Arizona’s voters. Among the indicted individuals are prominent Trump allies at the national level, such as Ken Chesebro, state Sen. Kelly Townsend, former state Rep. Mark Finchem, and former Arizona GOP lawyer Jack Wilenchik.
Among the 11 Republicans who falsely posed as Arizona’s presidential electors despite Joe Biden’s narrow victory in the state were former Arizona GOP Chairwoman Kelli Ward, state senators Jake Hoffman and Anthony Kern, and Arizona’s RNC committeeman Tyler Bowyer. Arizona Attorney General Kris Mayes, a Democrat, has been leading the aggressive investigation. Mayes is the fifth prosecutor to bring criminal charges related to the efforts by Trump and his allies to overturn the 2020 election results. Special counsel Jack Smith has also charged Trump with federal crimes, and prosecutors in Georgia, Michigan, and Nevada have charged individuals involved in similar schemes.
Charges against individuals involved in the Arizona election plot have recently expanded to include Meadows, Giuliani, Eastman, and Ellis, who were also charged in the Georgia case. Ellis pleaded guilty in Georgia, while Meadows, Giuliani, and Eastman have pleaded not guilty. The charges against Christina Bobb are notable, as she was recently appointed to a senior position at the Republican National Committee focusing on election integrity. Mayes began her term as Arizona’s attorney general in 2022, taking over from a Republican, and her investigation into the 2020 election plot has gained momentum, with numerous witnesses subpoenaed to appear before the grand jury, including false electors and figures in Trump’s national orbit.
Witnesses have described the grand jury proceedings as dynamic, with jurors from varying political backgrounds asking questions that reflect different perspectives. Some jurors appeared to sympathize with Democrats, while others were more politically conservative. Witnesses have also included figures like Trump attorney Ken Chesebro and former Arizona speaker of the house Rusty Bowers, who resisted pressure from Trump’s allies to overturn Biden’s victory in the state. Republican members of Congress Paul Gosar and Andy Biggs were also questioned in connection with the investigation, but not charged. Overall, witnesses have described the grand jurors as proactive and energetic, driving substantial lines of questioning while prosecutors focus on substantiating evidence related to the alleged election fraud.
