Six of the fake voters charged in Arizona are turning to fundraising to help fund their legal defense.
Michael and Kelli Ward are the only Arizonans seeking financial assistance so far. The other four indicted individuals are continuing their campaigns that they apparently started because of their involvement in other cases related to the 2020 presidential election. They all have accounts on GiveSendGo, a Christian crowdfunding site that also collects prayers for beneficiaries.
The Wards’ attorney, Brad Miller, launched the couple’s fundraising campaign in response to Attorney General Kris Mayes’ indictment. As of Friday, the effort had raised $100,000 from 92 donors, toward a goal of what appears to be $5.3 million. The target amount is not fully reflected on the fundraising website.
They also received 21 prayers.
Miller portrayed the Wards’ presentation of themselves as a legitimate presidential election in Arizona as a matter of free speech.
“AG Mayes is seeking to punish, bankrupt, and silence Kelli and Michael for speaking out for election integrity,” Miller wrote. “And Mayes wants to quash all future peaceful protests against the Democratic Party by criminalizing this kind of speech.”
The top donor through Friday was Hildy Angius, a member of the Mohave County Board of Supervisors and a Republican candidate for a Senate seat from Legislative District 30 in the northwest part of the state.
Other fundraising calls on the site come from Rudy Giuliani, a lawyer, aide to former President Donald Trump and former mayor of New York City; attorney Jenna Ellis, who worked with Giuliani on Trump legal matters; attorney John Eastman; and Michael Roman, a former Trump campaign official and co-defendant in the Georgia case involving fake voters.
Giuliani’s site was founded by Jackson Lahmeyer, an Oklahoma pastor who ran an unsuccessful campaign for the 2022 GOP nomination for U.S. Senate.
Giuliani “has been pursued to the highest levels through legal action for his support of President Donald Trump,” Lahmeyer wrote. As of May 24, the campaign had raised $40,000 toward its relatively modest goal of $100,000. He has also received 198 prayers.
Proceeds will be funneled into the Rudy Giuliani Freedom Fund, another account set up to pay for the former mayor’s legal bills.
Other defendants and their legal defense totals as of the end of May:
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Eastman started his own account on GiveSendGo with a goal of $1.5 million. He had raised $865,000 as of May 24.
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Ellis’ account was started by attorney Michael Melito, who represented her in a disciplinary case in Colorado in which Ellis admitted to making several statements in 2020 that violated professional ethics rules. She had raised $220,150, although no fundraising goal was set. Her biggest donor was conservative author Dinesh D’Souza and his wife, who donated $100,000.
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Michael Roman, Trump campaign worker in 2016 and 2020. He joined the crowdfunding site to raise $300,000 for his legal bills. By May 24, he had reached $64,000 toward that goal. He is represented by Dhillon Law Group, the same firm defending Arizona Sen. Jake Hoffman in the fake voter case.
Another of the accused persons is engaged in fundraising, but for a different purpose. Sen. Anthony Kern, R-Glendale, issued an appeal for funds to support his bid in Congress shortly after the charges were filed.
“If they lock up Trump and me…you will all be next,” Kern’s email reads. He is in a six-way race for the GOP nomination to represent the 8th Congressional District in the West Valley.
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Reach the reporter maryjo.pitzl@arizonarepublic.com or at 602-228-7566 and follow her on both Threads and X, the platform formerly known as Twitter @maryjpitzl.
This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Fake voters in Arizona: 6 defendants use crowdfunding to pay legal bills
