Finchem pays $49K sanctions order while launching fundraising appeal

Less than a week after dropping his appeal of his election loss, Mark Finchem has paid more than $49,000 in sanctions related to that case.

Finchem apparently was prodded into action by a discovery request from Craig Morgan, the attorney who represented Secretary of State Adrian Fontes in the election dispute. The sanctions, intended to cover the cost of attorney fees in the case, were levied in late May, with no action from Finchem.

The discovery request sought information on Finchem's assets, including his vehicles, real-estate holdings and guns.

Morgan described it as a common next step when judgments are ignored.

"Any attorney whose client wants to collect the judgment they were awarded will send a very basic request," Morgan said. He sent the discovery request in late July to pressure Finchem to act.

It worked. The check was dated Aug. 2.

But the demand also served as the basis for a Finchem fundraising appeal, headlined: "They want my every gun, donor, and bank statement."

The former GOP nominees for secretary of state wrote the discovery request was "the single greatest invasion of privacy in the history of Arizona," and claimed Fontes and the Democrats are trying to destroy his life.

He then linked to his fundraising page, where he states he needs $200,000 immediately to pay his attorneys. The appeal, sent Aug. 4, makes no mention of the fact he had paid the amount in full.

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Finchem lost the secretary of state race to Democrat Fontes last fall by more than 120,000 votes.

The $49,000 check covers the attorney fees, interest and other taxable costs not only for Fontes but also for Katie Hobbs, who was still serving as secretary of state when Finchem filed his lawsuit late last year.

Fontes was named as secretary of state-elect and bore the bulk of the legal costs: about $40,000, with Hobbs' attorneys due about $7,500.

Morgan said once the check clears the bank, he will send a check to Hobbs' attorneys.

He also said he'll file a release of the sanctions judgment against Finchem in the several counties where Finchem has recently been reported to be living: Pima, Pinal, Maricopa and Yavapai. Finchem, who served in the Legislature and ran for secretary of state as a resident of Oro Valley in southern Arizona, has filed to run for a state Senate seat in Prescott, in north-central Arizona.

Although Finchem has now paid the sanctions levied by Maricopa County Superior Court Judge Melissa Julian, he is still appealing the fact that the sanctions were levied in the first place. He argues the judge erred in her decision.

That case is pending before the Arizona Court of Appeals.

Reach the reporter at maryjo.pitzl@arizonarepublic.com or at 602-228-7566 and follow her on Twitter @maryjpitzl.

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This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Mark Finchem pays $49K sanctions order in failed AZ election challenge