Arizona House GOP forms panel to investigate AG Kris Mayes for 'weaponization' of office

Arizona House Republicans have a new mark in the executive branch: Attorney General Kris Mayes, who they say has engaged in a pattern of malfeasance and abuse of her office.

House Speaker Ben Toma, R-Glendale, announced Tuesday he had created an Ad Hoc Committee on Executive Oversight to investigate Mayes and "other state officials," though the announcement names only Mayes.

The House "has an inherent obligation under the Arizona Constitution to conduct appropriate oversight of officers in the Executive branch to protect the rule of law and the separation of powers,” Toma said in a statement. He said "the public and members of the House have raised serious concerns" about Mayes, a Democrat, that gave rise to his own concern.

The committee will develop recommendations for legislative action and "other measures to promote the rule of law and deter partisan abuse and weaponization" of the Attorney General's Office.

Mayes said in a statement the GOP was engaging in a political stunt.

"Apparently, every legislator currently running for Congress can't move fast enough to open a new inquiry into how I've done the job of attorney general," Mayes quipped. "This is just another political stunt from a majority party that doesn't seem to have solutions for many of the major issues facing our state."

Toma responded that the statement was coming from "the person that's probably guilty of political stunts, which is what caused this to begin with."

Last month, Sen. Anthony Kern, R-Glendale, won support from fellow Republicans on the Judiciary Committee he leads to open an investigation of Mayes. Kern cited Mayes' decision not to defend a 2022 law that stopped transgender girls from playing school sports.

But Kern is in Mayes' crosshairs as part of her investigation of 11 Republicans who pledged the state's electoral college votes to Donald Trump in 2020, though Arizonans voted for Democrat Joe Biden.

Kern and Toma are both seeking the Republican nomination for Congressional District 8, the seat currently held by U.S. Rep. Debbie Lesko, R-Ariz. Toma said Mayes' investigation of the 2020 electors was not a factor in forming the committee.

Rep. Jacqueline Parker, R-San Tan Valley, will lead the panel. She shared broad concerns and said in a text message more details would be discussed at the committee's first meeting, which has not been scheduled.

Mayes "refused to defend state laws in court, harassed parents who have elected to use the (private school voucher) program to educate their children, threatened elected county officials with illegitimate prosecutions, and diverted funds and resources of her office to serve her own partisan purposes,” Parker said in a statement.

Asked about those concerns, Toma pointed to Mayes' prosecution of two Republican Cochise County supervisors on charges they conspired to delay the official canvass of the 2022 election, when she was elected as attorney general. That came after Mayes lost a case challenging the supervisors' decision to delegate some election duties.

Mayes last year warned Mohave County supervisors who were considering a hand count of ballots that doing so would violate state law. She has said no matter what courts determine Arizona law is, she would never prosecute abortion cases.

Toma also noted that, after Mayes said Phoenix violated state law by sending seized and unclaimed firearms to Ukraine, she "then did precisely nothing about it."

Democrats will not be joining the committee, according to a spokesperson, though there are three seats for them.

House Democratic Leader Lupe Contreras, of Avondale, said Mayes was doing "excellent work" and "that will continue no matter what this partisan committee says or does."

House Republicans have previously taken aim at Democratic Gov. Katie Hobbs in a similar way, launching an Ad Hoc Committee on Oversight, Accountability and Big Tech last summer to "examine government censorship and conduct of state executive officials."

Both committees have convened as all 90 state lawmakers are up for re-election this year. Republicans, who hold the slim majority, face a divided government with Democrats in the governor's and attorney general's offices.

Reach reporter Stacey Barchenger at stacey.barchenger@arizonarepublic.com or 480-416-5669.

This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Kris Mayes: Arizona House GOP oversight committee a 'political stunt'