Arizona's Maricopa County to replace voting equipment over fear GOP-led audit compromised machines

Maricopa County in Arizona will not reuse most of the voting machines subpoenaed by the Republican-led Arizona Senate in its audit of the 2020 presidential election, county officials said.

"The voters of Maricopa County can rest assured, the county will never use equipment that could pose a risk to free and fair elections. The County recognizes Secretary Hobbs' authority ... to certify equipment for use in Arizona’s elections. As a result, the county will not use the subpoenaed equipment in any future elections," the officials said Monday, according to Yahoo News.

The statement follows a May 20 letter to county attorney Allister Adel from Arizona Secretary of State Katie Hobbs advising the machines be replaced.

Hobbs said she was worried the "security and integrity" of the machines were compromised in the audit conducted by the company Cyber Ninjas because it was "not certified to handle election equipment in the United States."

The statement said the county had been aware of possible risks to voting equipment as a result of the audit since February.

The cost to taxpayers for replacing the equipment is unknown. Maricopa County is about halfway through paying off its $6.1 million lease with Dominion Voting Systems for the equipment, and it is unclear if the county will have to pay the rest of the lease or not.