'We feel confident': Upbeat Kris Mayes leads by 510 votes as AG race heads to recount

Tara Kavaler
Arizona Republic
Attorney General candidate Democrat Kris Mayes on Arizona PBS where she debated Republican Abe Hamadeh on Wednesday, Sept. 28, 2022.

Almost two weeks after Election Day, the results were final in the race for Arizona attorney general after Maricopa County updated the tally with its last ballots. Democrat Kris Mayes led Republican Abe Hamadeh by 510 votes.

The unofficial vote count was final, but the counting wasn't done. With no outstanding ballots remaining, the race will go to a recount next month.

"We knew this race would be close. The polls showed us that. And we know we have a recount ahead," Mayes said in a statement to The Republic. "I know this past week and a half has been very stressful for many people. Thank you to all of our hardworking elections officials, poll workers and volunteers. We appreciate you. I’d like to express my deep gratitude to everyone who supported my campaign. Every vote mattered — and this race is surely a testament to that!

"As we head into this recount with a 510 vote lead, we feel confident that the end result will be the same, and I am very much looking forward to being your Lawyer for the People. I want to say I’m extremely proud of the campaign we ran. We were out there proactively on issues like reproductive rights, consumer fraud and the outrageous Saudi water grab. We will now be patient as we go through this process, and ask that everyone else do the same. Let’s lead with hope and humility versus divisiveness and chaos. I believe we’ve had enough of that. Thank you, Arizona! Onward..."

Hamadeh told The Republic in a statement: “We’re not done fighting and we are optimistic the recount will further expose the gross incompetence and mismanagement by Maricopa County officials that disenfranchised and silenced the voices of so many Arizona voters.”

Kris Mayes, Democratic candidate for attorney general of Arizona addresses the crowd during the election night watch party at the Renaissance Phoenix Downtown Hotel on Nov. 8, 2022.

The past 13 days have been a roller coaster, with Mayes' lead fluctuating from around 20,0000 votes Nov. 12 to as low as 55 Nov. 17. Hamadeh, however, did hold the lead for a few hours Nov. 9.

Regardless of the outcome of the recount, Arizona's next attorney general will make history.

If Mayes, previously elected to the Arizona Corporation Commission, holds on to her lead, she will be the first mom and first openly gay attorney general of Arizona.

If Hamadeh, a former prosecutor in the Maricopa County attorney's office, comes out on top, he will be the first attorney general of color and first attorney general of Arab descent in the Grand Canyon State.

What's next? Here's what the recount will look like

Since the vote differential between Mayes and Hamadeh is within half a percentage point, an automatic recount will occur as prescribed by state law. The recount will start after Dec. 5, when the Secretary of State's Office certifies the election results. Maricopa County Elections Director Scott Jarrett estimates it will take until the end of December to complete.

The recount is kicked off by the Secretary of State's Office going to court. A judge then will order the recount.

The state and county set the tabulator machines only to count votes in the races that are being recounted — in this case, the attorney general as well as superintendent of public instruction. After the county and state make sure the tabulators are working properly, county election employees will recount the votes for the prescribed races.

Representatives from the two major and Libertarian parties watch what is going on and pick a "statistically significant sample" of ballots to be counted without tabulators.

The final tallies from the recount then will be revealed in court.