Trump knew he lost. The January 6th committee conducted another hearing on Thursday, which concluded with a unanimous vote to subpoena Trump after damning testimony. While lying to his supporters that the election was stolen and telling them to invade the Capitol, aides said that Trump privately admitted that he lost on multiple occasions. And despite being warned of specific plans for violence at the Capitol on January 6th, Trump continued in his plot to overturn the 2020 election, inciting his supporters. As a result, people died, and the attacks on our freedom to vote continue as MAGA Republicans attempt to sabotage our elections.

To put it succinctly:

“The president knew the crowd was angry, because he had stoked that anger. He knew that they believed the election had been rigged and stolen, because he told them, falsely, that it had been rigged and stolen,” said Rep. Adam Schiff, D-Calif. “And by the time he incited that angry mob to march on the Capitol, he knew they were armed and dangerous.

“All the better to stop the peaceful transfer of power.”

Trump didn’t incite the attack alone. Republicans all over the country helped spread the lie that the election was stolen from Trump. In Arizona, state lawmakers have now passed laws based on the 2020 Big Lie conspiracy, attacking our freedom to vote however they can. Some Arizona members of Congress, like Paul Gosar and Debbie Lesko, were involved in the planning and coordination of the January 6th effort to overturn the election. Andy Biggs was even subpoenaed over his role in the planning — but refused to testify.

MVP goes to Mark Finchem! Finchem really went all out for Trump. He organized “Stop the Steal” rallies, tried to ban mail-in voting, advocated to throw out Arizonans votes, and was even at the Capitol on Jan. 6th. Now, he’s the Republican nominee running for Secretary of State. And he really thinks Arizonans should trust him with our elections?

The MAGA slate based their campaigns on these lies. Kari Lake, Blake Masters, Mark Finchem, and Abe Hamadeh have all made the Big Lie a central part of their campaigns. If they win in November, it’s clear that they will continue the MAGA effort to sabotage our elections, and try to put Trump back in office in 2024, regardless of what voters want. We can’t let Kari Lake, Blake Masters, Mark Finchem, and Abe Hamdeh dictate our election outcomes – Arizonans must reject their fascist ideas.