A request to sanction Arizona gubernatorial candidate Kari Lake (R) over her lawsuit challenging the results of the election has been denied by a judge in Maricopa County, according to The Hill.
Governor-elect Katie Hobbs (D) and the county had asked the judge to require Lake and her legal team to pay all parties’ attorneys’ fees, claiming that the suit was made in bad faith and without merit.
However, Judge Peter Thompson ruled that while Lake did not provide sufficient evidence to win the case, her suit did not meet the standard for imposing sanctions.
“There is no doubt that each side believes firmly in its position with great conviction,” Thompson said. “The fact that the plaintiff failed to meet the burden of clear and convincing evidence required … does not equate to a finding that her claims were, or were not, groundless and presented in bad faith. Any legal decision must be based on the law and facts rather than subjective beliefs or partisan opinions, no matter how strongly held.”
Thompson did order Lake to reimburse Hobbs for certain costs incurred during the proceedings, including fees for expert witnesses and compensation for Hobbs’s representative who attended ballot inspections prior to the trial.
Maricopa County and Hobbs had argued that Lake and her legal team should have known that they had no evidence to successfully challenge the election, and also noted Lake’s refusal to commit to accepting the election results before the midterms.
Lake’s campaign has stated that it will appeal the dismissal of the case and maintains its allegations of misconduct.
The motion to impose sanctions also referenced a tweet by Lake accusing the founding partner of Elias Law Group, which represents Hobbs as governor-elect, of improperly emailing the judge “what to say” in his dismissal.
Lake later deleted the tweet after it was cited in the sanctions request, The Hill notes.
