Legal group filing bar complaints against Kari Lake’s lawyers

The 65 Project is slated to file a lawsuit against Ms Lake’s lawyers that could get them disbarred

ARIZONA ELECCIONES (AP)

A legal advocacy group plans to file a lawsuit against lawyers for former Arizona gubernatorial candidate Kari Lake, NBC News reported on Thursday.

The 65 Project filed complaints against Jesse Kibort, Joseph Pull and Andrew Parker, who are licensed as lawyers in Minnesota, and Kurt Olsen, who is licensed in Maryland. All four attorneys represented Ms Lake and former Arizona candidate for secretary of state Mark Finchem.

The former Republican nominee for governor and newscaster refused to concede to Democratic Governor Katie Hobbs. She also repeated lies about the 2020 presidential election being stolen from former president Donald Trump and filed lawsuits before and after the 2022 election claiming voter fraud despite no evidence.

“This was [a] pre-planned, orchestrated effort to disrupt Arizona’s election even before it began and claim that there was fraud,” Michael Teter, the 65 Project’s managing director, told NBC News.

The group is reportedly bipartisan, though has ties to prominent Democrats like David Brock, founder of Media Matters for America. The group is named for the number of lawsuits filed to overturn the 2020 presidential election.

“We saw hundreds of election deniers across the country run and lose, and yet very few of them were bringing lawsuits in the aftermath of their losses,” Mr Teter said. “I think that’s partly attributable to our efforts in 2020.”

NBC News says the lawsuit could result in the lawyers facing suspensions or even disbarment.

Since losing the governor’s race, Ms Lake has maintained high visibility and was seen at the US Capitol. Earlier this month, she was seen at the US Senate and Politico reported that she met with officials at the National Republican Senatorial Committee, a sign she might seek a Senate run. She also visited Iowa earlier this month.

Senator Kyrsten Sinema, who late last year defected from the Democratic Party to become an independent, has not yet decided whether to seek re-election but Democratic Representative Ruben Gallego announced he would challenge her.