“I consider one’s vote to be one’s voice. I consider it a sacred vote. And the way we run our elections in Arizona is being trampled on. I’ve been sounding the alarm for two years now. Nothing happened. Very little happened last legislative session. And we have to go in there and restore faith in our elections,” Lake said on Fox News’ “Sunday Morning Futures.” “We can no longer be the laughing stock of the election here in Arizona. And, when I am governor, I will not allow it. I just won’t do it.” With 88 percent of the vote counted as of Sunday afternoon, Hobbs leads Lake by 1.5 percentage points — and Arizona officials have said the ballot counting process will stretch into next week. The Trump-backed Republican called Arizona election workers “incompetent” and accused them of deliberately slowing down the process. Many of those uncounted ballots are in Maricopa County, the state’s most populous county. County elections chief Bill Gates called Lake’s claim that officials were “slowing down” the process “insulting.” “It’s really sad to hear that we have the Republican candidate for governor here in Arizona talking like that,” he told CNN earlier this week. “I understand Lake Kari wants us to move fast and a lot of people do, but you know what’s more important? That this is done accurately.” Lake has been touting former President Trump’s claims of fraud in the 2020 presidential election and has sidestepped questions about whether she would accept the results of her own race if she loses. Lake on Sunday likened the state’s preparations for Election Day to “showing up for the Super Bowl that isn’t ready.” Senior Biden adviser says lame-duck priorities include government funding, Ukraine, natural disasters. “It’s shameful. It’s wrong. And we need people capable of running our elections. This incompetence or mismanagement is outrageous. And I think the good thing is that more people are waking up to the fact that Arizona has real problems when it comes to elections,” said Lake. “But I’m willing to wait until all the votes are counted… I think every candidate should wait until every vote is counted,” she added.
