The experts weighed in and it looks like an “open and shut” case for Kevin Cavanaugh, the man who supervises Maricopa. 

Results from a third-party investigation presented to the Pinal County Board of Supervisors in a special meeting today revealed “absolutely no evidence” behind Cavanaugh’s claims of a rigged election.  

The investigation by Phoenix-based Snell & Wilmer law firm into Cavanaugh’s self-published audit of the 2024 primary elections disproved its claims of data manipulation, tampering with votes and the existence of an anonymous whistleblower and USB stick.  

Brett Johnson, a partner with the law firm, repeatedly said there was “absolutely no evidence” behind any of the claims. Instead, he said the law team found “multiple errors” in Cavanaugh’s report, which included wrongly done basic math, incorrect formulas and incomplete data. 

Cavanaugh did not attend the special meeting due to related litigation he filed against the county last month.  

However, the supervisor criticized his lack of involvement in the investigation in a statement earlier today. He said, “no reasonable person can assume that a proper and complete investigation could have been carried out without talking to the person who initiated the complaint.” 

Supervisors in August requested a third-party review after Cavanaugh unveiled the findings of his self-styled audit, titled “Report of Obvious Errors in the 2024 Primary Election.” 

Vice Chair Jeff McClure directed board members, staffers, lawyers and the elections department “to review the methodology and analytics the supervisor used to reach his conclusions and also to have a forensic audit done of the technology utilized in the primary to determine if there’s any validity to what the supervisor’s alleging,” during an Aug. 21 meeting. 

They did just that. And the new report’s findings are exactly the conclusion audience members and other supervisors anticipated.  

Lisa Sanor, an Apache Junction resident and chair of the Pinal County Democratic Party, said she was done with the “shenanigans” Cavanaugh engendered over the past year.  

“To me, it’s a giant distraction,” she told InMaricopa tonight. “He is doing a severe disservice to his constituents and to every voter, regardless of party, in this county.” 

After hearing the results, District 5 Supervisor Jeff Serdy said telephonically it seemed to be a “pretty open and shut” case and he was “ready to get back to business.” 

Board Chairman Mike Goodman said he believed Cavanaugh’s election fraud campaign was a ruse to stir public doubt over his July 30 loss in the Republican primary for Pinal County sheriff. 

McClure also censured his fellow supervisor for not doing his job.  

“This particular item right here, this has nothing to do with his responsibility as a board of supervisor,” Goodman told InMaricopa. 

Sanor added she was concerned about the financial burden the county must endure because of the investigation. It’s a thought that hasn’t escaped Goodman’s mind, either, he said. 

“This particular process right here alone was, I believe, well over $100,000,” he said. “We expedited it, the experts had to be flown in, and they did all of this in three weeks.” 

A complete copy of the report can be found on the board’s agenda page.  

Pinal County elections officials in August confirmed Cavanaugh has filed to run against Pinal County Recorder Dana Lewis as a write-in candidate in the Nov. 5 general election.