PHOENIX — Republican lawmaker Liz Harris who was beforehand expelled won’t be despatched again to the Arizona House of Representatives, Maricopa County officers introduced Friday.
The county’s Board of Supervisors as a substitute chosen Republican Julie Willoughby to interchange her, regardless of Republican precinct committee members in her legislative district giving Harris probably the most votes.
“In my discussions with Ms. Harris, she firmly believes her removal was improper and unlawful,” mentioned Supervisor Jack Sellers, who represents an space that features the legislative district. “This board was not a party to that process but must give weight to an action that over two-thirds of the House members voted in favor of.”
Willoughby, an emergency room trauma nurse, teamed up with Harris in marketing campaign adverts and occasions throughout final 12 months’s election. They had hoped to win each district seats, however Harris and Democratic Rep. Jennifer Pawlik emerged as the highest two vote-getters.
Harris was kicked out final month in a bipartisan vote for organizing a presentation the place an Arizona insurance coverage agent made unsubstantiated accusations that a variety of politicians, judges and public officers of each events took bribes from a Mexican drug cartel.
A distinguished supporter of discredited election conspiracies, she was additionally discovered by the House Ethics Committee to have engaged in “disorderly behavior” in violation of the chamber’s guidelines.
The committee’s report mentioned Harris knew that the particular person she invited to the legislative listening to in February would accuse her colleagues of felony exercise, that she took steps to cover it from House leaders forward of time after which misled the committee investigating her actions.
Her removing got here lower than per week after Tennessee Republicans voted to expel two Black Democrats, a call that made that state a brand new entrance within the battle for the way forward for American democracy. But the Arizona vote didn’t carry the identical partisan and racial overtones. Instead, there was widespread and bipartisan condemnation for Harris’ actions.
Tennessee Reps. Justin Pearson and Justin Jones have been reappointed by native officers to return to the Legislature.
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