A judge has ordered the Cochise County Board of Supervisors to hold an emergency meeting this afternoon to certify the results of the 2022 election. 

Shortly after 3:30 p.m., two of the three members of the board quickly convened a meeting to follow the judge's order.

Now all 15 Arizona counties have canvassed their election results, paving the way for a final, statewide canvass on Monday.

In a swift ruling from the bench early Thursday afternoon, Pima County Superior Court Judge Casey McGinley determined that the supervisors had no discretion in the matter — the law requires them to approve the canvass of more than 47,000 votes cast in Cochise County in the recent general election. “It is clear what the board of supervisors is duty bound to do,” McGinley said.

The supervisors failed to hire an attorney in time to show up to the court hearing in the matter, but McGinley denied their request for a continuance of the case, and ordered supervisors to certify the results no later than 5 p.m. today.

The order also denied a request by Republican supervisors Tom Crosby and Peggy Judd to allow a previously scheduled hearing on Friday to move forward as scheduled.

Ann English, the lone Democrat on the board, warned the judge that the hearing would be nothing more than a circus used by Crosby to entertain election conspiracies.

“I think it’s a circus that doesn’t need to have to happen,” English told the judge. “I’ve had enough, I think the public has had enough.”

Crosby and Judd have delayed the matter for weeks and ignored an Nov. 28 deadline in state law to complete the canvass. The board met to follow the judge’s order and complete the canvass by a 2-0 vote. Crosby skipped the meeting.