In a recent December 19, 2022 interview on KJAZZ’s The Show, recently elected Secretary of State in Arizona, Adrian Fontes, who beat out Trump-backed election denier, Oathkeeper, and January 6th insurrectionist, Mark Fincham, defended Arizona’s election system. Fontes praised his Republican counterparts who have also worked to keep Arizona’s system one of the most accessible in the country – despite the attempts of some conservative lawmakers to the contrary, what Fontes names as the MAGA-Fascists.
As Maricopa County recorder from 2017-2021, Fontes oversaw the election process in the state’s largest county by population, including the metro Phoenix area. Despite ongoing claims of election irregularities and fraud by MAGA-fascists, Fontes is steadfast and confident that Arizona’s system is a model for other states.
Fontes has been in the national spotlight, including a Time magazine cover profile. In his discussion of democracy, he emphasizes county-level officials being vital to maintaining election integrity, reactionary politicians, Oathkeepers, anti-semitism, and other election issues; one phrase that stood out to me from the interview was “sore-loserism and MAGA-fascism.”
My ears were pricked by this phrase – MAGA-Fascists. The use of the F-word by conservatives like Bill Kristol, and even liberals like current US President Joe Biden, to describe the mainstreaming of more militant positions once associated with the alt-right has become more commonplace.
You can check out the full interview from minute 16:08 to minute 27:15. Click on the link for December 19, 2022.
