State Rep. Justin Heap set to run for Maricopa County recorder, setting up elections showdown

State Rep. Justin Heap will challenge incumbent Stephen Richer for Maricopa County recorder, setting up a primary showdown between Republicans that is likely to center on election administration.

Heap filed a statement of interest for the position on Tuesday afternoon, per county election officials. Whoever ultimately wins the seat in the November general election will lead the office overseeing early voting and voter registration in the state's largest county.

They also will be tasked with the more mundane job of recording various types of property documents and other public records.

The news comes after years of false voting conspiracies following recent elections and threats against Richer and other Arizona election officials. Allies of former President Donald Trump tried to pressure Maricopa County officials to question their ballot tallies after he lost the 2020 presidential race there, and the county remains a target for misinformation. Statewide, harassment has pushed some election officials to leave their posts or decline to seek reelection.

Richer, a private attorney with a background in public policy, was elected in 2020 on promises to take politics out of the Recorder's Office. He has quickly become a staunch defender of election operations in the embattled county and has amassed a war chest of more than $200,000 as he prepares to run again for his seat.

"The more the merrier," Richer told The Arizona Republic on Tuesday evening. "But I'm the only one who already has the signatures, has raised more money than all other candidates combined by a lot, has countywide name ID and has shown I can win a competitive general election. There's a reason why I'm in the office."

Heap released a campaign announcement on Tuesday evening accusing Richer and his predecessor, now Secretary of State Adrian Fontes, of "hyper politicization" of the Recorder's Office.

"It is time to return the position of county recorder to one that is exclusively focused on running transparent, secure, honest and lawful elections," Heap said.

During a Wednesday news conference announcing his candidacy, Heap spoke with reporters for less than 10 minutes. He didn't directly answer questions about whether he believed results of recent elections were legitimate.

"I’ll only make statements I feel I can prove," Heap said. "But it is clear that the incompetence of our county recorder contributes to the belief among all of our voters that things aren’t on the up and up."

Who is Justin Heap?

Heap, of Mesa, is currently a member of the state Capitol's hard-right Freedom Caucus. Elected in 2022, he ran uncontested in his Republican primary and beat out his Democratic opponent by about 14,000 votes. His heavily conservative legislative district spans parts of Mesa and Apache Junction.

During this year's legislative session, he has authored and supported bills to remove Arizona from a multistate voter registration list maintenance effort, allow any elected official in the state to bring an expert of their choice to inspect voting equipment in any jurisdiction, and encode ballot chain of custody procedures in law.

He also served as the co-sponsor of legislation that aimed to divide Maricopa County into several smaller jurisdictions, an effort spearheaded by some conservatives to dilute county officials' influence.

Heap expressed opposition to a resolution that would ask Gov. Katie Hobbs to automatically hand the state's electoral votes in 2024 to the GOP nominee for president. The proposal came from Rep. Rachel Jones, a Republican from Tucson and a fellow Freedom Caucus member.

Her resolution aimed to offset the removal of Donald Trump from primary ballots in several other states. It served mainly as a declaration with no effect, but still got strong pushback from legislative Democrats and many Republicans.

"So, you're arguing that we should go ahead and just appoint electors now and ignore the results of the election. Is that what I'm understanding?" Heap asked a speaker in support of the resolution.

Later, he asked: "Then why do we even have an election at all?"

New show about Arizona politics: Adrian Fontes discusses election security on The Briefing

Sasha Hupka covers county government and election administration for The Arizona Republic. Do you have a tip to share on elections or voting? Reach her at sasha.hupka@arizonarepublic.com. Follow her on X, formerly Twitter: @SashaHupka. Follow her on Instagram or Threads: @sashahupkasnaps.

This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Justin Heap set to run for county recorder, setting up GOP showdown