State election officials launched a probe Friday to find out who is paying for those campaign signs urging people to support Olivia Cortes in the Nov. 8 special recall election against Senate President Russell Pearce.
Secretary of State Ken Bennett said the inquiry started after Cortes, testifying under oath in court on Thursday, said that neither she nor her campaign had paid for or erected the handful of signs that have sprung up around the east Mesa legislative district.
"I seen them," she said. "But I don't know who put them."
Sitting in court was state Elections Director Amy Chan. She, in turn, reported it to her boss, Secretary of State Ken Bennett.
"That (admission) triggered the part of the state law that says if someone other than a candidate's committee puts up signs, they have to disclose on the sign who paid for those signs," Bennett said on Friday. "Once we realized it wasn't her committee that had done so, then the signs became known to us as being in violation."
Bennett said while he can seek penalties against the offending sign erectors, he has no power to take them down.
But they are coming down.
Christine Zielonka, director of development and sustainability for the city of Mesa, said that lack of disclosure violates her city's codes. And some signs, she said, were illegally placed in the public right of way.
"We had just assumed that she was responsible for the signs because she hadn't told us otherwise," Zielonka said. Now, with Cortes' sworn testimony, her staff realizes there is "no responsible party to bring the signs into compliance."
At this point city officials say they have taken down the six signs they have found.
That action may help Bennett unravel his mystery. Zielonka said the city will hold the signs for 10 days, as required by law, to see if whoever owns them wants to claim them.
Absent that, Bennett said his staffers will begin some sleuthing of their own.
He said they will peruse the campaign finance reports of other candidates to see who they have paid to print and erect their signs. Bennett said calls will be made to all of those companies to find out who printed the signs with Cortes' name, a quote attributed to her saying, "I will represent the PEOPLE," and the saying "Si, se puede," which originated with the United Farm Workers and loosely translates as "Yes, it is possible."
The penalty for violating the sign-disclosure law is a fine of three times the amount spent.
Bennett said, though, his office has no independent powers to penalize those who violate the sign-disclosure law. Instead, anything he finds has to be referred to the Attorney General's Office.
There may actually be two violations occurring.
State law does allow groups to spend money on behalf of candidates without their consent.
But these "independent expenditure" committees first have to register with the Secretary of State's Office. And Bennett said there is no record of any committee forming to aid Cortes.
Cortes' testimony came during questioning by attorney Tom Ryan who is representing those who want her name removed from the ballot. He contends she is a "sham" candidate, placed there by Pearce supporters to split the anti-Pearce vote between Cortes and candidate Jerry Lewis.
The inquiry about the signs was part of Ryan's series of questions to her designed to determine if she is a legitimate candidate or simply someone put up by others to aid Pearce.
Ryan is alleging that the real force behind the Cortes campaign is the East Valley Tea Party. But Greg Western, who is both the chairman of that group and working to help elect Cortes, said he, too, has no knowledge of the source of the signs.
Maricopa County Superior Court Judge Edward Burke said he will rule on Ryan's lawsuit by Monday.
• Garin Groff of the East Valley Tribune contributed to this story.
mwmike posted at 6:54 pm on Fri, Sep 30, 2011.
In the rich tea-publican history of Brewer, Pearce, Thomas, Henderschott, Arpaio, Bundguard, Symington, Mecham, Brock Landers Quayle, Keating, Wolfswinkel, J. T. Ready, . . .
arizonapride posted at 7:31 pm on Fri, Sep 30, 2011.
Oh, this should be rich.
Will there be a citation made out by the AZ SoS office to
Mr/Mrs Tooth Fairy, c/o East Valley Tea Party?
A_Rose_By_Any_Other_Name posted at 7:46 pm on Fri, Sep 30, 2011.
Republicans tend to clean up their own messes, unlike democrats.
Butters posted at 10:08 am on Sat, Oct 1, 2011.
"Cortes' testimony came during questioning by attorney Tom Ryan who is representing those who want her name removed from the ballot. "
Tom Ryan is NOT representing THOSE who want Cortes' name removed from the ballot. Tom Ryan is representing only ONE person in this case, a person by the name of Mary Lou Boettcher, a Parraz Puppet. There are NO other parties involved at all, not even intevenors who may have filed to join the suit on the side of the plantiff.
Tribune, how about doing your due diligence BEFORE writing articles with INCORRECT INFORMATION. Makes you look a whole lot more professional.
Case Number: CV2011-015853
http://www.superiorcourt.maricopa.gov/docket/CivilCourtCases/caseInfo.asp?caseNumber=CV2011-015853
Diogenes Lantern posted at 11:10 pm on Sat, Oct 1, 2011.
Lewis is the Sham candidate or else he is a political Pawn.
Why did he not run for another office-city council, school boards (he manages a charter school) or any office? Why doesn't he run against Pearce in a normal election? Lewis only claim to fame is being a Bishop in an LDS STake so why is he splitting the Church apart?
Why does he not tell Randy Parraz, Raul Grijalav, Big Sis Napolitano etc to leave him alone? This Pearce recall started before Jan before Pearce took office. Parraz travelled the USA this year raising a million to pay for signatures and to buy and install Lewis' signs-it's all on you tube. Who is the Sham now?
Who is Randy Parraz? Parraz is paid $128K (unioncheck.com) by the mob-controlled unions for community organizing (strawberry pickers) and class warfare (attack Pearce and Arpaio). Parraz was the President of IAF for none years. IAF was founded by Saul Alinsky as a commie training camp to "develop warriors in class warfare". Successful alumns include Fidel Castro, Caesar Chavez, Hugo Chavez (Ven), and President Hussein Obamanation and Randy Parraz. Why does Lewis not denounce these marxist retreads and why did he allow them to do everything for him? What will they ask in return of Lewis or is it to only humiliate Pearce? Nice Mormon Presidnet!
Chad Snow, Lewis' campaign manager, and a Glendale immigration lawyer (more bucks to process the illegals applications) claims that they aren't involved with Parraz. Fed campaign reporting indicates Snow paid $7800 to Parraz. There are many photos of Parraz and Snow (all non-Mesa residents) in photos of solidarity with Salvador reze (AZtlan-return AZ to Mexico) and Raul Grijalva and Ed Pastor, La Raza (kill whites).
Hum! Snow pays Parraz. Parraz on videos throughout the USA raising million to get Lewis' signatures and to buy/install Lewis' signs. Progressive marxist retreads helping a quote Conservative Republican? Who is the sham?
To quote Senator Trent Franks; "Don't allow the Loony Left , who are expected to spend more than one million dollars, flooding the streets with left wing open border activists". Go home Move on Org and SEIU-you lost in Wisconsin/Walker and now get out of Arizona! And take the mob-controlled unionists like Parraz and company with you.
CooperG posted at 8:06 am on Mon, Oct 3, 2011.
Hey Diogenes, stop spreading lies about Lewis. He's no pawn, he's Pearce's worst nightmare: an honest Republican who cares about the district. He wasn't recruited by the recall committee and YOU KNOW IT.
I'd like to know when is Russell going to man-up and take responsibility for HIS part in being recalled in the first place? This is classic "school yard bully" tactics, blame the people who point out that he's a failure. Yeah, "all of those big, bad moderate Republicans, Independents and Democrats are out to get me, so please save me. They want to help other people's families and educate our children and I don't, unless the donate to my campaign and fly me to sporting events."
Boo-freaking-hoo. Uh, yeah, it's never his fault. Ever. Uh huh.
BTW, neither Parraz' or Snow's names appear on any of the recall petitions, only LD18 resident's names do. That's the law. You know that "rule of" thing you Pearce kissers like to cite so much? To use a phrase, you're writing checks with your mouth that your rear end can't cash.
What you have here is slander, plain and simple. The only thing you have right is the spelling of their names. No one likes lying politicians, even people in LD18.
cameljar posted at 6:13 pm on Mon, Oct 3, 2011.
Russell Pearce has effectively lost my vote.
A_Rose_By_Any_Other_Name posted at 7:18 pm on Mon, Oct 3, 2011.
Diogenes Lantern, you speak the truth. cameljar, Russell Pearce never had your vote. I doubt you even vote.
"BTW, neither Parraz' or Snow's names appear on any of the recall petitions, only LD18 resident's names do. That's the law." Very true, yet they are the principles behind the recall? One would think the principles would come from within the district if this weren't really just a La Ratza scheme to dethrone their archenemy. lol the truth is always so much simpler than the lie.
Diogenes Lantern posted at 8:23 am on Wed, Oct 5, 2011.
The media leaves the impression that this type of gamesmanship is unusual;however, the Dems use this tactic twice last year and the old time media ignores it.
The AZ Democrats "Gamesmanship" Just for Year 2010:
1) Republican Schweikert successfully ran against incumbent Dem Mitchell in CD5 last year. The Dems sent out brochures in support of another party Libertarian candidate (believe Nick Coons)to take votes away from Schweikert from his conservative/libertarian base. The media was silent because they support playing dirty tricks to help a candidate they love-Mitchell.
2) When Republican Kelly almost bet Dem Giffords (lost by 4000 votes) it was due to 11,174 votes going to the Libertarian candidate, Steven Stoltz, Who paid for and distributed the direct mail for Stolz? You guessed it-the AZ Democratic party. The Dems put on Stoltz' brochures that Stoltz was "The Real Conservative"knowing that war hero Jesse Kelly was the conservative/tea party favorite? Hum! Where was the old media then?
And the Stoltz hit piece by the Dems didn't even have the required "paid by" on the brochures until Bivens admitted to it. Where was the media's indignation? What wasn't Don Bivens asked to resign as Dem State party Chair (believe he has now since Cheney in office)? (Mesa took down Olivia's signs because they didn't say "paid for". ( Mesa's employees are unionized?).
In the Cortes case, the media are in full frenzy. This poor Hispanic patriot is called "ignorant". "sham" (check out Lewis' puppet master-Randy Parraz for the definition of Sham), and the ultimate bigotry from AZ Republico's Roberts that Cortes does not know how to say "incumbent". Now the Republico is calling Cortes stupid because a group they despise (conservatives) engaged in a trick to support a candidate the AZ Rep hates
.The out of date media is silent on the dirty tricks of their left wing brethern. For supporting documents on above, go to Expresso Pundit.