Arizona Maricopa County Recorder Election Duties Dispute

A lawsuit to compel the Maricopa County Board of Supervisors to return funding and election management responsibilities to the county recorder.

Background

Justin Heap, the Maricopa County recorder (R), is suing the Maricopa County Board of Supervisors (“BOS”) to force them to return certain election management responsibilities and funding that the former recorder ceded to the board in an agreement last year before leaving office. Heap claims that the BOS is usurping his statutory authority in violation of Arizona law and is trying to unlawfully seize “near-total control” over the administration of elections by refusing to provide the recorder’s office with necessary funding. He asks the court to order the BOS to fund all necessary expenses incurred by the recorder and declare that any election authority delegated to the county recorder should remain unless the recorder says otherwise. 

Why It Matters

This lawsuit is part of an on-going dispute between Heap and the BOS over an agreement concerning the delegation of election management responsibilities that was executed shortly before Heap took office. The rancor between Heap and the board could undermine the county’s preparedness for the 2026 elections.

Latest Updates

• May 28, 2026: Heap asked the court to hold the Board of Supervisors in civil contempt for violating the April 16 judgment.
• May 20, 2026: The Board of Supervisors appealed.
• April 16, 2026: The court ruled in favor of Heap, finding that whenever Arizona law delegates a duty to the county recorder or an “other officer in charge of elections,” the statute is delegating that authority to a county’s recorder. The court further held that the BOS has a nondiscretionary duty to fund all necessary expenses of the recorder, and ordered the BOS to return control of the IT staff, servers, databases, and equipment that were removed from Heap’s custody.
• Dec. 2, 2025: Hearing scheduled.
• Nov. 6, 2025: The court denied Heap’s request for a temporary restraining order, finding that he has not established that the Board’s actions violate any Arizona law.
• Oct. 10, 2025: Heap filed a temporary restraining order to block the Board of Supervisors from auditing the county’s election systems.
• July 11, 2025: The Maricopa County Board of Supervisors filed their counterclaim, asking the court to declare that supervisors have discretion to delegate election tasks, and supervisors have sole custody of IT infrastructure.
• June 12, 2025: Plaintiff filed his complaint.