'Gaslighting the public': MAGA election head in swing state erupts at GOP
Tensions within the Republican leadership of Maricopa County, Arizona, have erupted into open conflict, with key figures now battling each other in court over control of local election administration, Phoenix New Times reported Friday.
In a lawsuit filed Thursday in Maricopa County Superior Court, County Recorder Justin Heap — an outspoken election skeptic aligned with the pro-Trump Make America Great Again (MAGA) wing of the GOP— accused the Republican-led Board of Supervisors of undermining his office and overreaching their authority.
Heap alleges the board is consolidating power by withholding funding from his office and absorbing its information technology operations into the county’s broader system, effectively stripping him of his independence.
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He claims the board’s moves amount to “gaslighting the public” and obstructing his legally mandated responsibilities.
He is asking the court to order the restoration of his office’s budget and IT staff, per the report.
"From day one, I promised the voters of Maricopa County that I would deliver more secure, more honest, and more transparent elections for all voters, regardless of political party," Heap said in a media release.
"Similarly, I have promised to utilize every tool under state and federal law, including Arizona’s judicial system, to accomplish these very popular objectives.”
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But Board chairman Thomas Galvin and vice chairwoman Kate Brophy McGee fired back, calling the suit “absurd” and “frivolous.”
They argue Heap misunderstands the legal boundaries of his role and is pushing a partisan agenda outside his authority.
The legal clash highlights growing fractures within the Republican Party as internal power struggles increasingly spill into public view — especially over the contentious issue of election integrity.