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Our only agenda is to publish the truth so you can be an informed participant in democracy. We need your help. More Info ### I would like to contribute One Time Monthly Yearly Join Now ![](\\" ![](\\" Bloggers stated on February 8, 2022 in a Facebook post and article: Arizona House bill to “decertify” 2020 results “could effectively recall the Biden electors.” ![\\"true\\"](\\" ![\\"pants- fire\\"](\\" * Elections * Facebook Fact-checks * Arizona * Bloggers ![\\"Arizona](\\" Arizona Secretary of State Katie Hobbs, left, and Arizona Gov. Doug Ducey sign election documents to certify the election results Nov. 30, 2020. (AP) ![\\"Amy](\\" By Amy Sherman February 11, 2022 # GOP lawmaker’s proposal to decertify Arizona election won’t change anything about 2020 #### If Your Time is short * Arizona State Rep. Mark Finchem, who is running for secretary of state with Donald Trump’s backing, proposed a resolution that would decertify the 2020 election results from three counties. * Legal experts said it isn’t possible to decertify the election. The U.S. Constitution lays out a process for the electors and certification of the presidential election, and that process was completed more than a year ago. * There is no evidence of widespread fraud in Arizona’s 2020 election. See the sources for this fact-check Former President Donald Trump and his allies have cheered a resolution by a Republican Arizona state lawmaker to decertify the 2020 election won by Joe Biden — a proposal that has no legal merit and isn’t going anywhere. \"Arizona House bill would decertify three counties in Arizona,\" said a Feb. 8 Facebook post by David J. Harris, a conservative commentator. The post links to an article on his website that says that if the resolution passes, \"it could effectively recall the Biden electors.\" He’s wrong. The post was flagged as part of Facebook’s efforts to combat false news and misinformation on its News Feed. (Read more about our partnership with Facebook.) The resolution he’s talking about was authored by State Rep. Mark Finchem. Trump, who has endorsed Finchem as a candidate for Arizona secretary of state, declared the resolution \"big news in Arizona!\" But it’s just wishful thinking by people who see political gain in rehashing the falsehood that Biden’s victory was the result of voter fraud. People should ignore claims from anyone about the prospect of undoing the 2020 results, says Chris Krebs, the former federal cybersecurity official who declared the 2020 presidential election \"the most secure in American history\" before being fired by Trump. \"There is no mechanism for such a thing under the law,\" Krebs tweeted in September. \"Here’s the thing: you’re the mark. They want your money, they want your rage, they want you turning out, protesting, & threatening officials. You’re a pawn. Nothing more.\" Recycled false claims and allegations Finchem’s resolution recycles claims about voter fraud that have been debunked by fact-checkers and elections officials. And it revives allegations of fraud and probable cause of criminal wrongdoing that investigations have dismissed. The resolution calls for setting aside the results in Pima, Maricopa and Yuma counties because Finchem said he believes the election there was \"irredeemably flawed,\" which prevented \"the declaration of a clear winner.\" Biden won Pima and Maricopa while Trump won Yuma. Finchem acknowledged in a press release about his resolution that there is no process under current law to decertify the election. But he said that doesn’t mean the Legislature can’t \"provide a remedy for outcome-determinative fraud and illegality in the conduct of the election.\" #### Featured Fact-check ![](\\" Instagram_logo_2016.svg/322c808c00e73c217d17772ddd5a0eb5.jpg\\") ![](\\" Instagram_logo_2016.svg/8b142c91ebe468a84a192e6df2b7b994.jpg\\") Instagram posts stated on August 11, 2024 in an Instagram post Craigslist ad shows “every single person” at Kamala Harris’ Arizona rally was paid. ![\\"true\\"](\\" false/33efdb6633e5e2fdc2d4e2f63383a1e0.jpg.\\") ![\\"false\\"](\\" false.jpg\\") By Sofia Ahmed • August 13, 2024 No power to decertify Rick Hasen, an election law professor at University of California, Irvine, called Finchem’s argument \"nonsense.\" \"This argument is not legally sound,\" Hasen said. \"The Arizona legislature had the right under Article 2 of the Constitution to set the manner for choosing presidential electors. It gave that right to Arizona’s voters, with no power to ‘decertify’ the results afterwards — whatever that means.\" After counties canvassed the results weeks after Election Day, Arizona state officials certified the results on Nov. 30, 2020, showing that Joe Biden won Arizona by about 10,500 votes. The electors cast their ballots for Biden on Dec. 14, 2020, and Congress accepted the results Jan. 6, 2021. The Legislature can’t disregard the results of the votes cast by electors, said Paul Bender, an Arizona State University law professor. \"I would not take Finchem\'s assertions seriously,\" he said. Arizona state House Speaker Rusty Bowers, a Republican, called the bill \"obviously unconstitutional and profoundly unwise\" – a sign that it won’t go anywhere. Our ruling An article shared on Facebook says an Arizona House resolution proposing to \"decertify\" the 2020 results in three counties \"could effectively recall the Biden electors.\" The post refers to a resolution by Finchem, a state legislator who has called for decertifying the results of the 2020 presidential election in Pima, Maricopa and Yuma counties. The resolution won’t change anything about the 2020 election. Arizona certified the results in November 2020, the electors cast their ballots in December and those results were accepted by Congress in January 2021. The Constitution lays out the process for certifying the election, and that process is over. We rate this statement Pants on Fire. _RELATED_: What you need to know about the fake Trump electors _RELATED_ : The distorted claim that 86,391 voters in Maricopa ‘don’t appear to exist’ #### Read About Our Process The Principles of the Truth-O-Meter ### Our Sources David J Harris Jr., Facebook post, Feb. 8, 2022 DJHJ Media, Arizona State Rep. Mark Finchem Introduces Resolution To SET ASIDE & DECERTIFY Three 2020 County Elections, Feb. 8, 2022 Save America PAC, Statement, Feb. 7, 2022 Arizona Republic, House speaker: Finchem\'s bill to set aside 2020 presidential results \'profoundly unwise\' Feb. 7, 2022 Arizona Republic, Arizona secretary of state certifies election results with Biden winning state\'s 11 electoral votes, Nov. 30, 2020 Arizona State Rep. Mark Finchem, Press release, Feb. 7, 2022 U.S. Rep Liz Cheney, WSJ: (Cheney) \"The Jan. 6 Committee Won’t Be Intimidated\" Feb. 10, 2022 Arizona Secretary of State Katie Hobbs, ​​2020 General Election County Canvass Returns, November 2020 Chris Krebs, former director of CISA and Partner, Krebs Stamos Group, Tweet, Sept. 24, 2021 Dispatch, Arizona Bill Peddles Debunked Election Fraud Claims, Feb. 8, 2022 AP, Fact-check: Pro-Trump auditors spin election falsehoods, Sept. 24, 2021 Washington Post The Fact Checker, Rebutting Trump’s claims about fraud in Arizona, point by point, Sept. 24, 2021 Maricopa County, Correcting the record, January 2022 Email interview, David J Harris, Feb. 10, 2022 Email interview, Rebecca Green, William & Mary law professor, Feb. 10, 2022 Email interview, Rick Hasen, University of California, Irvine, law professor, Feb. 10, 2022 Email interview, Paul Bender, Arizona State University law professor, Feb. 10, 2022 ## Browse the Truth-O-Meter ### More by Amy Sherman ![](\\" ![](\\" Kari Lake stated on July 16, 2024 in in a speech at RNC in Milwaukee: “Just last week, Ruben Gallego voted to let the millions of people who poured into our country illegally cast a ballot in this upcoming election.” ![\\"false\\"](\\" ![\\"false\\"](\\" By Amy Sherman • July 17, 2024 ![](\\" ![](\\" Joe Biden stated on July 13, 2024 in a statement to the media: “The idea that there’s political violence or violence in America like this is just unheard of.” ![\\"false\\"](\\" ![\\"false\\"](\\" By Louis Jacobson • July 15, 2024 ![](\\" ![](\\" Tom Cotton stated on June 16, 2024 in an interview on CNN\'s State of the Union: “The weapons that Ukraine used in the early days of this war to fend off the Russian invasion are the weapons that Donald Trump sent, that Barack Obama and Joe Biden had refused to send.” ![\\"half-true\\"](\\" th.jpg\\") ![\\"half-true\\"](\\" true.jpg\\") By Amy Sherman • July 2, 2024 ![](\\" ![](\\" Rick Scott stated on August 28, 2024 in a post on X: “This month alone, more than 16,000 non-citizens have been removed from the voter rolls in 3 states.” ![\\"half-true\\"](\\" th.jpg\\") ![\\"half-true\\"](\\" true.jpg\\") By Samantha Putterman • August 29, 2024 ![](\\" ![](\\" Donald Trump stated on August 23, 2024 in a speech in Las Vegas: “Kamala cast the tiebreaking vote to hire 87,000 new IRS agents to go after your tip income.” ![\\"false\\"](\\" ![\\"false\\"](\\" By Amy Sherman • August 28, 2024 ![](\\" ![](\\" Tim Walz stated on August 14, 2024 in a speech in California: Former President Donald Trump “cut overtime benefits for millions of workers.” ![\\"barely-true\\"](\\" th.jpg\\") ![\\"barely-true\\"](\\" barely-true.jpg\\") By Amy Sherman • August 20, 2024 ![](\\" ![](\\" Pete Buttigieg stated on August 11, 2024 in an interview on CNN State of the Union: Gov. Tim Walz delivered paid family leave in Minnesota but “Republicans are blocking” a Biden-Harris proposal. ![\\"mostly-true\\"](\\" th.jpg\\") ![\\"mostly-true\\"](\\" mostly-true.jpg\\") By Amy Sherman • August 16, 2024 ![](\\" ![](\\" Donald Trump stated on August 8, 2024 in a press conference: Says his Jan. 6, 2021, speech on the White House Ellipse drew the “same number of people,” as the 1963 March on Washington where Martin Luther King Jr. gave his “I Have a Dream” speech. ![\\"false\\"](\\" ![\\"false\\"](\\" By Louis Jacobson • August 9, 2024 ![](\\" Instagram_logo_2016.svg/322c808c00e73c217d17772ddd5a0eb5.jpg\\") ![](\\" Instagram_logo_2016.svg/8b142c91ebe468a84a192e6df2b7b994.jpg\\") Instagram posts stated on August 2, 2024 in a video: In Pompano Beach, Florida, Somali immigrants illegally in the U.S. were in line to get driver’s licenses and “all you need to vote is a driver\'s license.” ![\\"false\\"](\\" ![\\"false\\"](\\" By Kwasi Gyamfi Asiedu • August 7, 2024 ![](\\" ![](\\" Donald Trump stated on July 27, 2024 in a rally in St. Cloud, Minnesota: During the 2020 Minnesota riots after George Floyd’s murder, Gov. Tim Walz didn’t call in the National Guard, “so, I sent in the National Guard to save Minneapolis.” ![\\"false\\"](\\" ![\\"false\\"](\\" By Amy Sherman • August 7, 2024 ![](\\" ![](\\" Donald Trump stated on August 3, 2024 in a rally in Atlanta: Kamala Harris “supports mandatory gun confiscation.” ![\\"barely-true\\"](\\" th.jpg\\") ![\\"barely-true\\"](\\" barely-true.jpg\\") By Amy Sherman • August 7, 2024 ![](\\" ![](\\" Donald Trump stated on July 24, 2024 in a rally in Charlotte, North Carolina: Kamala Harris “wants to defund the police.” ![\\"barely-true\\"](\\" th.jpg\\") ![\\"barely-true\\"](\\" barely-true.jpg\\") By Amy Sherman • July 30, 2024 ![](\\" ![](\\" Donald Trump stated on July 24, 2024 in a rally in Charlotte, North Carolina: Kamala Harris “supported abolishing ICE.” ![\\"false\\"](\\" ![\\"false\\"](\\" By Amy Sherman • July 29, 2024 ![](\\" Instagram_logo_2016.svg/322c808c00e73c217d17772ddd5a0eb5.jpg\\") ![](\\" Instagram_logo_2016.svg/8b142c91ebe468a84a192e6df2b7b994.jpg\\") Instagram posts stated on July 22, 2024 in an Instagram post: There are nine states “where Biden’s name can’t be removed and no one can be added. That’s over 130 electoral votes in the toilet.” ![\\"false\\"](\\" ![\\"false\\"](\\" By Ranjan Jindal • July 23, 2024 ![](\\" ![](\\" Kamala Harris stated on July 17, 2024 in a campaign video: \"Unlike Mike Pence, (J.D.) Vance said he would have carried out Trump\'s plan to overturn the 2020 election.\" ![\\"mostly-true\\"](\\" th.jpg\\") ![\\"mostly-true\\"](\\" mostly-true.jpg\\") By Amy Sherman • July 18, 2024 ![](\\" ![](\\" Kari Lake stated on July 16, 2024 in in a speech at RNC in Milwaukee: “Just last week, Ruben Gallego voted to let the millions of people who poured into our country illegally cast a ballot in this upcoming election.” ![\\"false\\"](\\" ![\\"false\\"](\\" By Amy Sherman • July 17, 2024 ![](\\" ![](\\" Joe Biden stated on July 13, 2024 in a statement to the media: “The idea that there’s political violence or violence in America like this is just unheard of.” ![\\"false\\"](\\" ![\\"false\\"](\\" By Louis Jacobson • July 15, 2024 ![](\\" ![](\\" Tom Cotton stated on June 16, 2024 in an interview on CNN\'s State of the Union: “The weapons that Ukraine used in the early days of this war to fend off the Russian invasion are the weapons that Donald Trump sent, that Barack Obama and Joe Biden had refused to send.” ![\\"half-true\\"](\\" th.jpg\\") ![\\"half-true\\"](\\" true.jpg\\") By Amy Sherman • July 2, 2024 ![](\\" ![](\\" Rick Scott stated on August 28, 2024 in a post on X: “This month alone, more than 16,000 non-citizens have been removed from the voter rolls in 3 states.” ![\\"half-true\\"](\\" th.jpg\\") ![\\"half-true\\"](\\" true.jpg\\") By Samantha Putterman • August 29, 2024 ![](\\" ![](\\" Donald Trump stated on August 23, 2024 in a speech in Las Vegas: “Kamala cast the tiebreaking vote to hire 87,000 new IRS agents to go after your tip income.” ![\\"false\\"](\\" ![\\"false\\"](\\" By Amy Sherman • August 28, 2024 ![](\\" ![](\\" Tim Walz stated on August 14, 2024 in a speech in California: Former President Donald Trump “cut overtime benefits for millions of workers.” ![\\"barely-true\\"](\\" th.jpg\\") ![\\"barely-true\\"](\\" barely-true.jpg\\") By Amy Sherman • August 20, 2024 ### GOP lawmaker’s proposal to decertify Arizona election won’t change anything about 2020 * ![](\\" ![](\\" Instagram posts stated on August 27, 2024 in an Instagram post: California S.B. 1174 eliminates the requirement for voter ID at polling places. ![\\"barely-true\\"](\\" th.jpg\\") ![\\"barely-true\\"](\\" barely-true.jpg\\") By Sofia Ahmed • August 30, 2024 * ![](\\" ![](\\" X posts stated on August 29, 2024 in X posts: President Joe Biden “did a campaign ad at the graves in Arlington in 2020.” ![\\"barely-true\\"](\\" th.jpg\\") ![\\"barely-true\\"](\\" barely-true.jpg\\") By Loreben Tuquero • August 30, 2024 * ![](\\" ![](\\" X posts stated on August 16, 2024 in a video: Video shows “Kamala Harris describing how she can ruin lives with the \'swipe of a pen.’\" ![\\"false\\"](\\" ![\\"false\\"](\\" By Kwasi Gyamfi Asiedu • August 30, 2024 * ![](\\" ![](\\" Facebook posts stated on August 25, 2024 in a post: Kamala Harris’ “plan to tax unrecognized Capital Gains mean(s) if your house goes up in value you will have to pay that Tax Even if you don’t sell your House!” ![\\"barely-true\\"](\\" th.jpg\\") ![\\"barely-true\\"](\\" barely-true.jpg\\") By Sara Swann • August 30, 2024 * ![](\\" ![](\\" Facebook posts stated on August 25, 2024 in a Facebook post: “There’s no such thing as menopause.” ![\\"pants-fire\\"](\\" th.jpg\\") ![\\"pants-fire\\"](\\" pants-fire.jpg\\") By Madison Czopek • August 30, 2024 * ![](\\" ![](\\" Instagram posts stated on August 27, 2024 in an Instagram post: “Hollywood actor Kurt Russell just said: ‘It is now proven, beyond a shadow of a doubt that Kamala Harris and Joe Biden CHEATED in the 2020 election with mail-in ballots.’” ![\\"false\\"](\\" ![\\"false\\"](\\" By Caleb McCullough • August 30, 2024 * ![](\\" ![](\\" Kamala Harris stated on August 22, 2024 in her acceptance speech at the Democratic National Convention: Former President Donald Trump \"intends to enact what, in effect, is a national sales tax ... that would raise prices on middle-class families by almost $4,000 a year.\" ![\\"half-true\\"](\\" th.jpg\\") ![\\"half-true\\"](\\" true.jpg\\") By Louis Jacobson • August 30, 2024 * ![](\\" ![](\\" Viral image stated on August 27, 2024 in a Facebook post: “Kurt Russell forms a new non-woke actors alliance with Roseanne Barr and Tim Allen.” ![\\"false\\"](\\" ![\\"false\\"](\\" By Ciara O\'Rourke • August 30, 2024 * ![](\\" ![](\\" Viral image stated on August 23, 2024 in an X post: Photo of former President Donald Trump after an assassination attempt was generated by artificial intelligence. ![\\"false\\"](\\" ![\\"false\\"](\\" By Ciara O\'Rourke • August 30, 2024 * ![](\\" ![](\\" X posts stated on August 28, 2024 in an X post: C-SPAN captions for a JD Vance speech said, “Single person clapping.” ![\\"false\\"](\\" ![\\"false\\"](\\" By Ciara O\'Rourke • August 30, 2024 Load more ### Support independent fact-checking. 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Arizona House bill to decertify 2020 results could effectively recall the Biden electors