Maricopa County Board Addresses Controversial Equipment Incident
In a surprising turn of events during the Tempe Jurisdictional Election, an unexpected incident involving Maricopa County Recorder’s Office (MCRO) staff has prompted an official response from the county’s Board. The situation unfolded when two MCRO employees were captured on security footage removing a crucial piece of election equipment.
The incident occurred at 1:36 p.m. on March 12, 2026, when a scanner, under the jurisdiction of the Board of Supervisors, was taken from the Maricopa County Election & Tabulation Center (MCTEC) by the Recorder’s Office Chief Information Officer (CIO) and another employee. The equipment was loaded into what appeared to be a personal vehicle, lacking any official county identification, and returned approximately 50 minutes later after a notification from the county Elections Director.
Following standard procedures, Maricopa County Human Resources (HR) launched an internal investigation into the matter. Despite MCRO’s lack of cooperation, the HR report confirmed that the CIO had been previously informed about the scanner’s management by the Board’s Elections Department through an inter-office message on March 5.
The investigation further revealed another concerning action by the CIO on the same day—the removal of several provisional ballot affidavit envelopes from a secure area. Although these envelopes may have contained live ballots, the investigation concluded with all ballots and envelopes accounted for the following day.
After the completion of the HR inquiry, the findings were shared with the Recorder’s Office, and the Maricopa County Attorney’s Office (MCAO) was brought in for legal guidance. The MCAO appointed a special prosecutor to assess any potential criminal activity, with the investigation still in progress.
As a precautionary measure, the Board has replaced the compromised scanner, incurring a cost of approximately $70,000.
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