What do Maricopa County recorder candidates believe? Hear from Justin Heap, Timothy Stringham

ARIZONA ELECTION 2024

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Voters will weigh in on the future of elections in Maricopa County this November when they cast ballots in the recorder's race.

The seat holds power over voter registration and early voting, and the race has drawn national attention. Maricopa County is the most populous county in the state and one of the largest voting jurisdictions in the country. Recently, it has also become a breeding ground for voting conspiracies.

State Rep. Justin Heap defeated incumbent Stephen Richer and information technology professional Don Hiatt in the GOP primary. He'll face military veteran and attorney Timothy Stringham, a Democrat, in the November election.

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Heap has voiced issues with county elections. He has previously supported legislation to remove Arizona from a multistate voter registration list maintenance effort and has pledged to clean voter rolls. He also has promised faster election results.

The Arizona Republic asked each candidate questions about their bid for office and how they would handle key issues if elected. Here's what they had to say. Answers may have been slightly edited for clarity and brevity.

Growth: How will you ensure election processes can withstand population increases?

If elected, you will be tasked with overseeing voter registration and early voting in a rapidly growing county. What steps will you take to ensure voter rolls are properly maintained? What changes or improvements would you make to early ballot processing and signature verification?

Justin Heap: Effective voter roll management is central to ensuring voters can have trust in the process of Maricopa County’s elections. Under the current recorder, voter roll maintenance has been laughable at best, resulting in historically low voter confidence and voter disenfranchisement. My promise to voters is to do everything within the confines of our election laws to clean our voter rolls in real time and to restore transparency, lawfulness and honesty back to our elections. In the Arizona Legislature, I am fighting for this, and I will make it happen as recorder.

Timothy Stringham: Arizona already has a robust process to protect our voter rolls while making our elections accessible for voters. What I promise to do is to listen intently to our poll workers and our career election officials, and work to bring them resources and advocate for policies to make their jobs easier. In Maricopa County, we have over 2.4 million voters and we record over a million documents a year. The job of the recorder is to make sure our employees have the tools to get a job of that size done. Leadership should always listen to their workers before deciding that they know better. That's what I've done as an officer in the United States military and it's how I'll lead as the county recorder.

Threats: How will you protect your workers from harassment?

County election officials have seen threats and harassment in recent years. What steps would you take to protect your staff, ensure your office can retain employees and ensure you can attract new workers when needed?

Heap: I condemn any and all violence or threats against all election officials. That is simply not who we are as Americans. I categorically reject it. I also condemn the Democrats weaponization of our government and justice system to target and destroy their political opponents. Both of these are a perverse corruption of our American institutions. If anyone makes a credible threat against a public official, I believe they should be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law.

Stringham: The county recorder needs to work closely with all of our law enforcement agencies in the Valley as well as federal agencies to analyze every aspect of our security, whether that means Election Day security, election integrity or office safety. I've worked in national security for more than 15 years, including time working for the Department of Justice, Department of Defense and Department of Homeland Security. I also have a master's degree in national security law from Georgetown University, so safety for our employees and our voters isn't just a top priority for me, it's an area of expertise.

Electoral trust: How confident are you in election results?

How confident are you in the certified results of the 2020 and 2022 elections?

Heap: What’s abundantly clear to any honest observer is that voters are disenfranchised and have lost trust in our elections. Restoring voter confidence and the integrity of our elections has become the civil rights issue of our time. We need more transparency, lawfulness and honesty in the election process so every voter is confident in the outcomes of Maricopa County elections.

Stringham: I'm extremely confident in the results of those elections, however, I also don't want anyone to feel like their concerns are being dismissed nor do I think we need to be complacent about future elections. It is fantastic that people are interested in election security and integrity. We just want to make sure that we are having informed, honest discussions, instead of what we got with the Cyber Ninjas investigation, which was a grossly irresponsible waste of taxpayer money.

Property documents: How would you improve recording functions?

The recorder does more than just election-related duties. If elected, you will also be responsible for recording a variety of documents, including deeds, plats and other property records. How would you improve the current recording system and searchable database?

Heap: I will make sure the system is accessible and transparent for everyone. We need to be constantly vigilant in protecting Maricopa County property owners against deed and title fraud by enhancing the notification systems for property owners whenever a change in status occurs.

Stringham: Deed fraud is increasingly becoming a problem and we need to work closely with our real estate professionals and title companies to create secure processes to record documents, as well as efficient processes to identify and investigate suspected fraud that do not slow down business in a fast-growing county. This issue might not affect a lot of people, but when it does, the results are catastrophic. We also need to continue to work to improve our county websites so that if you do need information, it is readily accessible.

On a personal note: Who do you admire?

What person in public life, past or present, do you most admire, and why?

Heap: President Abraham Lincoln. Not only is he the father of the Republican Party, but he successfully fought the signature civil rights battle in our nation’s history. His steadfastness, faith and wisdom held America together during its darkest time. Election integrity has become the civil rights issue of my lifetime. I am running for Maricopa County recorder to make sure that every voter, regardless of political party, can have trust that our elections are run honestly, securely and accessibly.

Stringham: My fellow U.S. Navy veteran, John McCain, who reminded us that there was no greater life than one spent in service.

See all the races for Arizona

Voter guide: Election Day is Nov. 5. Here is a guide to help you learn about all the candidates and the voting and tabulating process.

This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Justin Heap vs. Timothy Stringham: Hear from the candidates