# Kris Mayes **Kris Mayes** (born September 6, 1971) has been the Democratic Attorney General of Arizona since January 2023. She won the office by **280 votes** over Republican Abraham Hamadeh, a result confirmed by a mandatory recount, one of the closest statewide races in Arizona history. She matters to this vault for three things: Arizona's criminal case against the 2020 [[Fake Electors Scheme]], her fight with the [[CFTC]] over [[Kalshi]], and her November 3, 2026 race against Republican [[Warren Petersen]]. That race will likely decide whether the fake-elector case is ever refiled. ## Background A former *Arizona Republic* reporter and press secretary to Janet Napolitano's 2002 campaign, Mayes was appointed to the Arizona Corporation Commission as a Republican in 2003 and served until 2010. She left the party in 2019, citing "the expansion of Trumpism," and became a Democrat. ## The fake-elector case | Date | Event | |---|---| | April 2024 | A state grand jury indicts 18 people: the 11 Republicans who signed Arizona's false electoral certificates and seven Trump associates, including [[Mark Meadows]], [[Rudy Giuliani]], [[Boris Epshteyn]], [[John Eastman]] and [[Jenna Ellis]]. The charges are conspiracy, fraud and forgery. | | Aug 2024 | Ellis's charges are dropped in exchange for her cooperation. Elector Loraine Pellegrino pleads guilty to filing a false instrument and gets probation. | | May 2025 | The trial court sends the case back to the grand jury, finding that jurors were not given the relevant text of the [[Electoral Count Act]]. | | Sept 2025 | The Court of Appeals declines to overturn that ruling. | | Nov 10, 2025 | Trump pardons the defendants for federal crimes. The pardons do not reach Arizona state charges. | | June 4, 2026 | The Arizona Supreme Court declines review. Mayes's office says it will return the case to a grand jury. | | June 2026 | Prosecutors move to dismiss the indictment, vowing to seek a new one. | | Aug 2026 | Maricopa County Judge Sam Myers dismisses the case **without prejudice**, rejecting the defendants' bid to bar a new prosecution. | Defendants also included [[Kelli Ward]] and [[Tyler Bowyer]]. After the dismissal her office said it had "no updates" on when it would seek a new indictment. States Newsroom reported that if Petersen wins in November, he is unlikely to pursue one. The Wisconsin counterpart is covered on [[Josh Kaul]]; the wider chronology is in [[Stop the Steal Timeline]]. ## The withheld audit memo On February 22, 2023, weeks after taking office, Mayes released the findings of her predecessor [[Mark Brnovich]]'s investigation into the [[2021 Maricopa County Presidential Ballot Audit]]. The memo had found nearly all of the [[Cyber Ninjas]] claims unfounded and "no evidence of election fraud." Brnovich had never published it. ## Prediction markets (2026) In March 2026 Mayes filed a 20-count criminal information against [[Kalshi]], including counts over election wagering. It was the most aggressive state action against a prediction market to date. The [[CFTC]] sued Arizona on April 2, won a temporary restraining order on April 10, and in May Judge Michael Liburdi enjoined the state from enforcing its gambling laws against CFTC-registered exchanges. See [[CFTC v. Arizona]]. ## The 2026 race Mayes had no primary opponent. Petersen, the Arizona Senate President, won the July 21, 2026 Republican primary over former Tucson councilman Rodney Glassman, leading about 56% to 44% in early returns. An AARP poll taken July 26–28, 2026 by Fabrizio Ward (R) and Impact Research (D) had Mayes ahead by 5 points among 913 likely voters (one poll). See [[2026 Key State Races Hub]]. ## See Also - [[Fake Electors Scheme]] · [[Stop the Steal Timeline]] · [[Electoral Count Act]] - [[CFTC v. Arizona]] · [[Kalshi]] · [[CFTC]] - [[2026 Key State Races Hub]] · [[State Officials Hub]] · [[Warren Petersen]] · [[Adrian Fontes]] · [[Katie Hobbs]] - [[Josh Kaul]] — the Wisconsin attorney general who brought the parallel case