Arizona state Sen. Jake Hoffman announced on Saturday that he was elected as national committeeman for the Republican National Committee (RNC), three days after an Arizona grand jury indicted him for the “fake electors scheme”—described as an effort to overturn the 2020 presidential election results.
While the other seven defendants were not directly named, detailed descriptions indicate that President Trump’s Chief of Staff Mark Meadows, lawyer Rudy Giuliani, lawyer John Eastman, and lawyer Christina Bobb are likely on the list.
“The road to saving America runs through our great state, and the RNC has a crucial role to play in supporting and empowering the Republican grassroots who fight every day against the Democratic Fascists currently trying to destroy opportunity and prosperity for everyone who calls Arizona home,” he added.
Mr. Hoffman is accused of sending a Jan. 5, 2021, letter to former Vice President Mike Pence, urging him to allow Arizona’s state Legislature members to decide its 2020 electors instead of the state’s popular vote, which was being contested by Republicans and President Trump.
“It is in this late hour, with urgency, that I respectfully ask that you delay the certification of election results for Arizona during the joint session of Congress on January 6, 2021, and seek clarification from the Arizona state legislature as to which slate of electors are proper and accurate,” Mr. Hoffman allegedly wrote in the 2021 letter.
Mr. Hoffman had previously told reporters that the Arizona GOP’s uncertainty in the “outcome of our [2020] election” meant that no electors should be sent and that any Democrat electors should be contested.
Dueling slates of electors are possible in U.S. elections under the U.S. Constitution and the 1887 Electoral Count Act if the executive and legislative branches disagree on the correct outcome from the popular vote.
The senator released a statement after learning of his indictment regarding his efforts to challenge the 2020 election.
“Let me be unequivocal, I am innocent of any crime, I will vigorously defend myself, and I look forward to the day when I am vindicated of this disgusting political persecution by the judicial process,” Mr. Hoffman said.
President Trump was not directly named in the indictment, but document details suggest he might be “Unindicted Coconspirator 1.”
Those who were directly named in the indictment include former Arizona GOP Chair Kelli Ward, Turning Point USA’s Tyler Bowyer, and state Sen. Anthony Kern, who is running for Arizona’s 8th Congressional District in 2024.
Arizona is the fourth state after Georgia, Michigan, and Nevada to indict allies of President Trump who are accused of engaging in the “false elector scheme” to challenge the 2020 presidential election results.
The U.S. Supreme Court is expected to rule on President Trump’s immunity claim soon, with some speculating the decision could come by June. The decision could affect some or all of the criminal cases against President Trump and his allies, including the Arizona indictments.
“They do nothing but undermine the trust in our state’s legal processes and are clearly designed to silence dissent and weaponize the law against political opponents,” the party wrote.
The Epoch Times has reached out to the RNC for comment.
