Democracy Defenders: Stephen Richer, Maricopa County Recorder in Arizona
Photo-Illustration by TIME; Patrick T. Fallon — AFP / Getty Images
TIME
This summer, Stephen Richer, the county recorder in Maricopa County, Ariz., ran for re-election as an unabashedly pro-democracy Republican. That was a bold stance in Maricopa, which had been overrun by baseless allegations of widespread voter fraud in the 2020 and 2022 elections. Richer spent the past four years defending the integrity of his county’s election administrators and coming up with new ways to encourage citizens to see with their own eyes how their votes are counted. “If there's one thing that I would say has been the centerpiece of my four years, it’s been just increasing the flow of information,” Richer says.
For those efforts, Richer was reviled by fellow Republicans and attracted death threats, including one from a state party official who called for his lynching. At town halls, Richer prompted boos for simply affirming the 2020 election wasn’t stolen. “I just thought that it was the only ethically responsible thing to do,” he says. “And I would do it again.”
In July, Richer lost his Republican primary to a far-right challenger who has cast doubt on the outcomes of recent elections. Richer will step down in January, after overseeing the 2024 elections in a closely watched swing state. Even so, Richer tells TIME he wouldn’t change a thing. “If you poll-tested ‘democracy defender’ in a closed Republican primary right now in Maricopa County, I think that's a loser,” he says. “I personally went through some pretty low times. But it was very meaningful.”
ADDITIONAL NEWS FROM THE INTEGRITY PROJECT
