Page:Final Report of the Select Committee to Investigate the January 6th Attack on the United States Capitol.pdf/301

 Republicans in Arizona experienced similar treatment. In the most populous and electorally significant county in Arizona, Maricopa County's Board of Supervisors met on November 20th to certify the county's election results. Their Board, made up of four Republicans and one Democrat, carefully reviewed the official canvass, asked questions for approximately two hours, then unanimously voted to certify the results.

Earlier that day, Kelli Ward contacted two of the board's members, Jack Sellers and Bill Gates, and asked them to delay the certification on the basis of supposed improprieties. According to Sellers and Gates, however, Arizona law required certification that day and they had no information (neither then, nor ever) to doubt the county's election results.

When Arizona certified its 2020 statewide election results on November 30th, it fell to Governor Doug Ducey, a Republican, to sign the certification. While on camera during the signing ceremony, Governor Ducey's phone played a ringtone for the song "Hail to the Chief," which he immediately silenced.

The Governor later confirmed it had been President Trump calling and that he returned the President's call shortly afterwards, but declined to say what the two discussed other than saying that President Trump did not ask him to withhold certification. The Select Committee does not know whether that is true, but that evening President Trump blasted Ducey on Twitter, accusing him of "rushing to put a Democrat in office," and warning that "Republicans will long remember!" The President also retweeted posts bashing Ducey and his Georgia counterpart Brian Kemp, which asked "Who needs Democrats when you have Republicans like Brian Kemp and Doug Ducey?", "why bother voting for Republicans if what you get is Ducey and Kemp?", and "Brian Kemp: 'My state ran the most corrupt election in American history.' Doug Ducey: 'Hold my beer.'" President Trump even commented "TRUE!" when retweeting a post that "Gov Ducey has betrayed the people of Arizona."

Governor Ducey pushed back, writing on Twitter that, "I've been pretty outspoken about Arizona's election system, and bragged about it quite a bit, including in the Oval Office . . . In Arizona, we have some of the strongest election laws in the country . . . The problems that exist in other states simply don't apply here." Governor Ducey explained the law for certifying elections in Arizona and pointed out that the certification now triggered a "5-day window for any elector to bring a credible challenge to the election results in court. If you want to contest the results, now is the time. Bring your challenges." And, Governor Ducey referenced his oath of office: