Highlights
- Recorder Justin Heap filed for civil contempt against the Maricopa County Board of Supervisors on May 29, citing defiance of an April 16 court order.
- The April ruling required supervisors to return election-related functions and IT staff to Heap's office; the board appealed and the appeal is pending.
- Heap's filing warns that every day of noncompliance puts the legal validity of this year's midterm election results at risk.
- Board Chair Kate Brophy McGee accused Heap of seeking confrontation over collaboration; the July 21 primary is the immediate deadline.
Maricopa County Recorder Justin Heap filed for civil contempt against the county's board of supervisors in Maricopa County Superior Court, escalating a dispute over election authority with the July 21 primary approaching.
Heap's filing accuses supervisors of ignoring an April 16 judgment that ordered them to return control of several election-related functions and information technology staffers to his office. He asked the court to compel compliance through a contempt finding and, if supervisors still refuse, to levy substantial fines payable to his office.
The board had moved to stay the April ruling, arguing implementation was too close to the primary to execute without disrupting election operations. That motion failed. Supervisors then filed an appeal, which remains pending, according to Arizona Mirror reporting by Sasha Hupka and Votebeat. A Your Valley report identified the presiding judge as Scott Blaney and noted the board voted 4-1 to seek the stay and authorize the appeal.
The contempt filing cites two recent flashpoints. During a local election, the recorder's office and the board's elections department disagreed over whether poll workers should verbally tell voters they could show identification at polling sites to have mailed ballots counted faster. Then, last week, Heap sent a letter to the board asserting his office holds authority over ballot drop box locations for the primary and warning that election workers handling ballots from what he called unauthorized receptacles could face criminal penalties. The board unanimously approved a slate of voting locations, including the drop box sites, at its May 20 meeting.
Heap also contends the board has not returned his office's IT team, which was folded into a central IT operation under a deal supervisors struck with his predecessor before he took office. Supervisors recently voted to fund new IT positions in the recorder's office, but Heap's filing treats that as insufficient.
Heap's attorney argued in the filing that the board is on track to administer elections in a manner the court has already declared unlawful, with risks to voter confidence and to the legal validity of election results.
Board Chair Kate Brophy McGee said in a statement that Heap has refused to meet with the board to resolve outstanding issues and that his office has "sought confrontation rather than collaboration" at every turn. She said the board remains committed to an election process that is secure, transparent, and conducted in accordance with state and federal law.
Democratic Supervisor Steve Gallardo accused Heap of attempting to sabotage election operations over the drop box dispute.
The July 21 primary is the next hard deadline for both sides; the contempt motion is now before the court.
Sources
Every factual claim in this article traces to one of the sources below. See how we work for the editorial process.
- azmirror.com retrieved 30/05/2026 00:36
- yourvalley.net retrieved 30/05/2026 00:36
Authored by The Scottsdale Signal. Drafted by AI from primary-source material under our beat-specific editorial guides; reviewed by humans before publish under our five-gate process. Sources retrieved at 30/05/2026 00:36. Every claim traces to a source.
