Secretary of State: 27K+ uncounted ballots left in Arizona, canvass set for early December

PHOENIX (3TV/CBS 5) — Votes are still being counted in Arizona, but the tabulation process is winding down. As of now, there are roughly 27,000 uncounted ballots left across the state, according to data from the Secretary of State’s website.

But even when the counting is finished, the results aren’t finalized yet. All 15 counties have to verify their results and complete what’s called a canvass.

“The counties have until Nov. 28 to canvass their results, so they have to basically compile all of their data from the election, all of the results for all of the races, and take that to their Board of Supervisors for approval,” explained Allie Bones, Arizona’s Assistant Secretary of State. “So every county will go to their board of supervisors and take a vote on the approval of their county results.”

Bones says she hopes every county takes the job seriously and completes the canvass by the deadline.

“There’s no leeway in their decision about whether or not to sign that. So if any county, you know, decides or tries to say that they’re not going to sign off on the canvass because they don’t agree with the results, that will result in legal action against them,” Bones said.

After the county canvasses are complete, the state will hold a statewide canvass on Dec. 5 where Gov. Doug Ducey, Attorney General Mark Brnovich and Secretary of State Katie Hobbs will sign off on the results.

Arizona’s Family asked Bones about Hobbs’ involvement in the canvass since she’s also Arizona’s Governor-elect. At this time, Bones says there is no reason why Hobbs wouldn’t be at the statewide canvass in December.

“It is not something that the Secretary does on her own and it’s again a ministerial act. She is signing off on the results that come up from the counties,” Bones said.

If a statewide race heads to a recount, the Secretary of State’s office tells Arizona’s Family, “we’ll immediately go to court after the state canvass to ask for that recount order.”

The recount results will likely take a few weeks, meaning the close races might not be official until the end of December. Tap/click here for the latest election headlines.

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