Informing Democracy Statement on Charges Against Peggy Judd, Tom Crosby in Cochise County, AZ

Today, following reports that Cochise County supervisors Peggy Judd and Terry Thomas “Tom” Crosby have been indicted by a grand jury for their alleged efforts to delay the county’s certification for the November 2022 general election, Informing Democracy Managing Director Peter Bondi issued the following statement:

“It's essential to democracy that election outcomes are decided by the choices voters make, not by the officials responsible for administering the elections—but Peggy Judd and Tom Crosby broke the public’s trust and the law when they allegedly conspired to delay certification. Rogue officials like them who abuse their authority in an attempt to change election results must be held to account for their lawlessness.

“While the charges brought against Judd and Crosby are a critical step to restoring confidence in our elections, we must seek accountability for all those who’ve tried to undermine them and stay vigilant to fight off future attacks. The future of our democracy depends on it.”

Additional Background: Ahead of last year’s midterm elections, Informing Democracy published a report providing a detailed look at the vote counting and certification processes in Arizona to identify potential vulnerabilities. Earlier this year, Informing Democracy also released a report identifying several members of the Cochise County Board of Supervisors as exhibiting anti-democratic tendencies—including both Judd and Crosby.