Trump ally wrote Ariz. Senate election subpoenas used to seize county ballots, texts show

A retired U.S. Army colonel and staunch loyalist to Donald Trump helped draft subpoenas the Arizona Senate used to seize Maricopa County election data for its "audit" of 2020 election results.

Phil Waldron worked with Trump's outside legal team to overturn election results and pitched lawmakers on a plan to declare a national emergency and seize voting machines before the Jan. 6, 2021, Capitol riot. He told the state Senate what to target in its subpoenas, newly released records show.

Text messages obtained by The Arizona Republic offer the first direct evidence that Trump's allies steered the Senate's costly legal battle against the county as part of their efforts to overturn the election.

The texts, uncovered through public records lawsuits, show Waldron communicated directly with then-Senate President Karen Fann and played an important role in driving the "audit."

Among the data he directed the Senate to go after was information on absentee ballots, Dominion voting machines, computer server security logs and any associated domain names, according to texts sent from March to July in 2021.

The messages are among hundreds that Waldron exchanged with Cyber Ninjas CEO Doug Logan, the contractor hired by the Senate to lead the discredited recount of 2.1 million ballots cast in Maricopa County.

Waldron's involvement further undermines Fann's repeated claims the ballot review was "not about Trump" or "about overturning the election." She has maintained the "audit" was undertaken to promote voter integrity and to ensure there was nothing wrong with the election.

Texts reveal that Logan, Waldron, Fann and other senators were in lockstep during the hand count of ballots.

"Hey, Phil, when you helped them with that subpoena, did you include the absentee ballot envelopes," Logan asked in a March 5, 2021, text.

Waldron said he couldn't remember and would check. Minutes later he offered to provide Logan with a subpoena issued by state Sen. Warren Peterson, who was then chair of the Judiciary Committee: "Just in case you don't have the version issued by Warren Petersen."

In another text, Logan laid out a list of items Waldron "had requested" in the Senate's original subpoena to the county. He asked Waldron if an internet domain listed in the subpoena was actually in use.

"I asked the Senate where that subpoena item came from and they said from you ;-)," Logan texted Waldron on July 14, 2021.

"Those are targets," Waldron replied.

Waldron did not respond to a phone call or text about his exchanges with Logan or his work on the Senate's subpoenas.

Tom Liddy, chief of the county attorney's civil services division, said he was not surprised to learn of Waldron's involvement.

"We knew right away ... nobody with Arizona ties wrote them," he said.

Liddy pointed to the first subpoenas the Senate issued in December 2020, authorized by then Sen. Eddie Farnsworth, R-Gilbert. He said the subpoena demanded information about Arizona's voting system that didn't exist.

"It asked for all of the documents we have on ranked-choice voting," Liddy said, adding Arizona never has used ranked-choice voting.

"We knew right away (the subpoena) was not written by Farnsworth but written by someone from outside the state."

The Senate issued additional subpoenas to Maricopa County in 2020 and 2021 seeking election data and equipment. The county mounted a legal challenge, but a judge sided with the state.

Frequent communication between Waldron, Karen Fann

Waldron's texts illuminate his ties to Fann, R-Prescott, and their frequent communication throughout the "audit" on everything from Logan's hiring to handling donations.

"How did it go with Karen?" Logan asked Waldron in March 2021.

"All good," Waldron replied. "She was walking into a dinner. Said to call her in the morning — at least got out that we were trying to calm the situation."

Waldron told Logan in April 2021: "Fann is texting me with 'tidbits.' Let me know if I can take pressure off."

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On May 16, 2021, Waldron texted Logan that Fann was seeking his help: "Talked to Fann at length yesterday — she asked for help — also need to talk to you about another item."

And on June 27, 2021, Waldron said he was directing potential donors to Fann so it wouldn't look as if Logan were involved.

"Steve has some donors lined up — Todd and I had a call with them today — they just want to make sure they are helping with 'results' told them that info would best come from Fann so you aren’t put in a squeeze."

Fann did not respond to repeated interview requests or questions about Waldron and Logan's text messages.

Her own texts, previously reported on by The Republic, make clear she relied on Waldron's counsel, especially when it came to hiring Logan.

Fann hired the Cyber Ninjas to lead the hand count after privately communicating with Waldron. She told Waldron in a Feb. 27, 2021, text she felt more comfortable with Logan after Waldron vouched for him.

Fann announced she'd chosen Cyber Ninjas on March 31, 2021. Although neither Logan nor his company had election auditing experience, Fann said he was "well qualified" and "well experienced."

The hand count was supposed to take a few weeks and cost taxpayers $150,000. It ultimately took months and so far has cost Arizona more than $5 million. Logan admitted in text messages that he couldn't make sense of his own numbers, which he called "screwy."

Fann has repeatedly refused to explain her decision to hire Logan. She sidestepped the direct question again in a series of texts last month to 12 News reporter Brahm Resnik.

"It's amazing how the AZ Republic and other media failed to report the entire story, decided to fill in the blanks with their own made-up version and totally ignored the real problem of Maricopa County not following the election laws," Fann said in a Sept. 20 text to Resnik. "That was the only reason the Senate called for the audit."

Close involvement in all aspects of Arizona 'audit'

Waldron, 59, is a cybersecurity consultant from Dripping Springs, Texas, who was involved in psychological operations during his military service.

He had every reason to believe he would be part of the "audit" when Fann made her selection. He said as much to Logan in a Feb. 1, 2021, text obtained by The Republic.

"Doug — can you shoot me your resume. Fir the Arizona forensics?? May get the go tomorrow," Waldron wrote.

The "go" was a likely reference to Fann's initial decision to undertake the "audit "using a Texas-based cybersecurity firm associated with Waldron called Allied Security Operations Group. Its members were closely tied to Trump and involved in strategy sessions on overturning election results in several swing states.

Fann later rejected ASOG over concerns about its credibility and dissemination of discredited election fraud theories. But she didn't give up on Waldron ― or Logan.

Waldron has said in interviews that he worked on secret projects in the military with Trump's former National Security Adviser Michael Flynn, and the two worked together after the 2020 election on a campaign to keep Trump in the White House.

Waldron met with legislators in multiple states, spreading baseless conspiracies about a stolen election and widespread voter fraud. He was invited to White House meetings and spoke with Trump’s chief of staff many times between the Nov. 3, 2020, election and Jan. 6, 2021.

Waldron also authored a 36-page PowerPoint that he presented to lawmakers on how Trump could activate the National Guard and declare a national emergency to subvert his election loss, according to the House Select Committee that investigated the U.S. Capitol riot.

Text messages and emails show Waldron was involved in all facets of the Arizona "audit." His texts exhibit a mixture of planning and paranoia. He coordinated with other Trump allies on funding, strategized with Logan and openly worried about security and who had access to "audit" information.

"Hey — l'm officially the decoy lol — let me know what I can do to help pull heat of," Waldron told Logan on April 1, 2021.

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In June, he warned Logan someone on his team might be leaking information: "Counter intel is going to be crucial."

Waldron messaged Logan about setting up audits in other states, including one in New Hampshire. The text messages make clear they were in business together.

"Also working on NH audit," Waldron wrote in an April 8, 2021, text. "Let's talk scalability of our pricing."

"I know this is the answer you don't like / want to hear," Logan replied. "But I really think we have to revisit pricing after Maricopa when we do a debrief on what worked well and what did not work well."

Waldron helped coordinate a visit to the "audit" from a delegation of Michigan Republican lawmakers. He communicated with Flynn and Christina Bobb, a former One America News Network host who was a member of Trump's legal team and raised funds for the partisan ballot review.

"Did you get a 1mil truancy from Corey Lewendowsk," Waldron texted Logan on July 16, 2021 text, clarifying that he was referring to a payment from the Republican operative and former Trump campaign manager.

Waldron on Aug. 13, 2021, months after the official hand count had ended, questioned Logan on how much he still needed for the "audit." Logan said he needed $2.5 million.

"Lindell is likely calling you if he hasn't already," Waldron wrote two days later, referring to My Pillow CEO Mike Lindell, a Trump loyalist and election conspiracy theorist.

Waldron also tried to advise Logan on end-running public records requests.

"Hey — Just heard about the FOIA request. The legal team thinks there is a way to delay it. You may have already covered it. Let me know if you need assist," Waldron said in a Sept. 16, 2021, text.

Logan continues to keep some text messages secret

Logan last month turned over hundreds of messages in response to The Republic's lawsuit that he exchanged with Waldron and Seth Keshel, a retired U.S. Army captain and election denier who is known by social media followers as "Captain K."

But the texts offer only a partial record of Logan's exchanges with Waldron and Keshel, whom Logan considered hiring as a salesperson and installing at the "audit."

Dozens of messages are redacted, and many more are missing. Moreover, Logan redacted dozens of texts that he had previously made public.

The Republic in 2021 sued the state Senate and Cyber Ninjas for "audit" records under the Arizona Public Records Law. The lawsuits have forced the disclosure of documents detailing the highly partisan nature of the botched ballot review.

While Logan has released more than 39,000 messages, he has redacted thousands without explanation and in apparent violation of court orders. Logan has released messages in haphazard, nonsequential batches and in different formats. Messages released in November, December, February, March and July were not organized chronologically or in any other discernible order.

A team of nationally recognized data analysts who built software to untangle, organize and search Logan's messages confirmed the Waldron and Keshel texts suffer the same gaps in conversations and deleted messages.

The team, known as The Audit Guys, also spotted messages that Logan now appears to be trying to erase from public view through redactions. "It's almost as if he's decided he doesn't want you to see it," election analyst Larry Moore said.

A judge in January 2022 fined Logan's company $50,000 a day until he complied with the order. The Arizona Supreme Court affirmed the fine in July 2022, rejecting Logan's request to rescind it. The fines now total in the millions of dollars.

Logan did not respond to questions about his message exchanges with Waldron and Keshel. But his own messages reveal the partisan web holding Logan's hand count together.

Thousands of text messages show he was part of a coordinated campaign to challenge results in several swing states when Fann tapped him to lead the hand count.

Logan was enlisted by members of Trump's inner circle to help access voting machines in Georgia and Michigan, where authorities say he was part of a criminal conspiracy.

He was named as a suspect in Michigan and identified as one of 30 unnamed and unindicted co-conspirators in Georgia. He was not charged in those states or in Arizona, where the state attorney general is investigating Republican-led efforts to overturn the 2020 election.

In addition to its $150,000 contract with the Senate, Cyber Ninjas and its subcontractors got millions more from nonprofits set up by Trump allies and prominent figures in the “Stop the Steal” movement.

Logan announced at a Sept. 24, 2021, Senate hearing the hand count showed President Joe Biden beat Trump in Maricopa County, and the numbers closely matched the county's certified election results from November.

Logan's reports skimmed over the outcomes and focused on perceived voting irregularities. His analysis sowed doubts about results of the election process. His findings allowed Trump allies to insist the vote was compromised.

Its immediate aftermath was to further instill distrust in voting machines and encourage partisan calls for paper ballot tabulations, hand recounts and "audits."

A fire sale on 'audit' equipment to cover expenses

The tone and tenor of Logan's text exchanges with Waldron changed dramatically in 2022. Their messages changed from promises to rescue the country from Democrats to unloading "audit" equipment at "fire sale" prices.

Logan in January 2022 announced he could no longer afford to run Cyber Ninjas, and the business was shuttered.

All of the specialized equipment set up to conduct the ballot review at Veterans Memorial Coliseum — round lazy Susan tables where volunteers ticked off vote tallies, poles used to support security cameras, racks where electronic servers were stored — were mere commodities.

Waldron was eager to buy.

"How much stuff total do you have," Waldron asked in a Jan. 14, 2022, text.

"Fire sale," Logan replied, detailing costs for a quick sale.

"Make me an offer lol," Waldron texted.

Logan said in a text he had to clear out a warehouse "with all of the audit stuff," which he said was being stored by "a patriot" who had sold his business.

The next day, on Jan. 15, 2022, Logan arranged to fly to Texas. He asked Waldron who could handle deliveries.

"Who should my friends in Phoenix be working with to deliver the OE crate," he said in a series of texts. "I have some friends getting the equipment ready now. Scott even volunteered to come to Austin to help us assemble a PE table if needed."

Two months later, Logan was still trying to unload equipment. He asked Waldron on March 4, 2022, if he'd "pinged Lindell's team" about buying servers.

Logan's concerns were the same that he'd expressed countless times during the "audit": raising money to pay for it.

"If we sell all of this remaining equipment well, we're within striking distance of a few good sized donations of getting all the contractors paid," Logan said in one of his final texts to Waldron about the "audit" on March 4, 2022.

"Awesome," Waldron replied.

Robert Anglen is an investigative reporter for The Republic. Reach him at robert.anglen@arizonarepublic.com or 602-444-8694. Follow him on X, formerly Twitter: @robertanglen.

This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Trump loyalist Phil Waldron wrote subpoenas for Ariz. Senate 'audit'