Duties of the County Recorder:
The Recorder maintains voter registration records and administers early voting, including mailing out early ballots, providing on-site early voting locations and verifying voter signatures on early ballot affidavits and petitions within their county. The Recorder also manages public records, including property documents and governmental information, and provides tools that safeguard the public from title theft and other types of document fraud.

Qualifications of Candidates Bob Thorpe versus Aubrey Sonderegger:

Currently Employed:
Sonderegger: Unemployed.
Bob: Currently an AZ State Licensed Home Inspector, NAAR Real Estate Associate.

Employment History:
Sonderegger: None Listed
Bob: AZ State Licensed Home Inspector (Currently), Northern AZ Association of Realtors (NAAR) Real Estate Associate (Currently), AZ State Legislator, Price Waterhouse Accounting Firm Information Technology Professional, UCLA Software and High Technology Instructor, Commercial Database and Medical Patient Software Development, eCommerce Design, Commercial Database Software Company Business Owner, Law Enforcement Software Consultant, Energy Efficiency Consultant for Government and Businesses, Walt Disney Imangineer, Aerospace Military Aircraft Mechanical Design and Support Engineer.

Education:
Sonderegger: B.A. Degree Fine Arts, Minor in Geology, LMT Massage Therapist.
Bob: B.A. University Degree, M.A. University Graduate Program, 120 hours of Instruction and 32 Inspections for Home Inspector License, Firefighter I & II Fire Academy and Certificate, Emergency Medical Technician (EMT) Certification and National Registry Examination.

Related Experience:
Sonderegger: Experience and understanding of election procedures through registering voters, poll observation, ballot curing, and observation of Logic and accuracy tests of machines.
Bob: AZ State Lawmaker (8 years), Chairman of 4 Committees, Served on the House Elections Committee, Price Waterhouse Accounting Firm, IT (Information Technology) and database development (over 20 years), UCLA Software and High Technology Instructor (8 years), Software Business Owner, Software Consultant, Voter Registration, Voter education, Candidate Education and Support, Home Title Fraud Investigations.

Managed Businesses, Departments, Personnel and Processes:
Sonderegger: No.
Bob: Yes, for over 15 years.

Understands, Wrote & Enacted AZ State Laws and 8-Annual Multi-Billion Dollar AZ State Budgets:
Sonderegger: No.
Bob: Yes, Bob has in-depth experience opening Bill Folders at the State Capitol and lobbying the Governor and State Legislature in order to improve our Election Laws. It is extremely import that the Recorder can read, understand and comply with all Federal, State and Local laws.

Public Speaking and Debating Before Congress in Washington D.C. and at the AZ State Capitol:
Sonderegger: No.
Bob: Yes, 8 years.

Wants New Voter Registration On Election Day:
Sonderegger: Yes.
Bob: No, it certainly would cause confusion and staffing problems on Election Day, and possibly voter fraud. New voters must obey AZ State Laws, which allows for early voter registration for up to a month before each election.

Wants Computer Voting Machines (Vulnerable Security, Votes Can Be Lost, Manipulated and Hacked):
Sonderegger: Yes.
Bob: No, it is much more secure to only use paper ballots for both early and polling place voting. Software based EVMs (Electronic Voting Machines) can be vulnerable to security breaches and are almost impossible to fully audit. According to a 2020 article, many major world countries have banned the use of EVMs, including England, France, Germany, and the Netherlands. Our paper ballots must be scanned and counted using non-hackable, non-internet connected tabulating machines. Also, in order to stop the introduction of fraudulent ballots, every ballot needs to have its own unique Serial Number that the voter can track and verify after their vote has been recorded.

Wants “Permanent” Early Voter List (For Example, Without Removing Voters Who Have Moved Out of Coconino County or Have Died):
Sonderegger: Yes.
Bob: No, for Honest Elections, we simply cannot keep mailing Early Ballots to the former addresses of people who no longer live in Coconino County or have died.

Wants Photo ID’s (Identification) in Order to Vote:
Sonderegger: No.
Bob: Yes, Honest Elections are Extremely Important. Photo ID’s are very easy to obtain even for free from MVD, and are required in many, many aspects of our lives, such as getting onto an airplane, picking up a prescription, and even purchasing tobacco and beer products.

Should People Who Do Not Live within Coconino County Vote in Our Local Elections:
Sonderegger: Yes
Bob: No, someone who does not live in Coconino County should not disenfranchise our permanent local resident’s votes, they should instead receive an early ballet for the location where they actually live.

Should Long Expired Coconino Voter Database Entries Be Removed (i.e., Over 4 Years Inactive):
Sonderegger: No, she did not seem concerned
Bob: Yes, the National Voter Registration Act of 1993 (NVRA) requires ongoing maintenance of county voter databases, including removing entries that have been inactive for over 4 years. Coconino County’s voter database has over 6,000 entries that have not been removed, some that are over 40 years inactive.

Endorsements:
Sonderegger: Arizona List, Democracy FIRST.
Bob: Jim Parks Former Supervisor Coconino County District 4, Lori Matthews Council Member City of Flagstaff, Tom Horne AZ State Superintendent of Schools & Former State Attorney General, Warren Peterson AZ State Senate President, Ben Toma AZ State Speaker of the House, Karen Fann Former AZ State Senate President, David Gowen Former AZ State Speaker of the House, JD Mesnard Former AZ State Speaker of the House, Gilbert Chee Leupp Navajo Veterans Commander, Joe James Navajo Marine Veteran, Dilcon / White Cone, Larry Voyles Retired Director, AZ Game and Fish Department, Gary Morse Retired Fire Chief Strawberry – Pine Fire District, Dan Shearer Retired Fire Captain Highlands Fire District, Andy Groseta Former President National Cattlemen’s Beef.

Community Service:
Sonderegger: Voter registration drives, voter education, donations to local organizations: Flagstaff Shelter Services, High Country Humane, Sharon’s Attic.
Bob: Voter Registration, Voter Education, Candidate Education and Support, Home Title Fraud Investigations, Volunteer Structural and Wildland Firefighter and Emergency Medical Technician (EMT) (8-years), Elementary School Crossing Guard and Math and Reading Tutor (2.5 years), Worked with Veterans to Collect and Deliver over 30,000 Pounds of Food and Supplies to Diné and Hopi Citizens During Covid, Assists Diné Military Veterans including annual firewood harvesting, Supports Our First Responders – Active Military – Veterans and Purple Heart recipients, Supports Local Youth – 4H – Scouting – High School Robotics and Trade Programs, Supports Coconino Farm Bureau and Cattle Growers, Supports our Local Food Banks and Charities, An Active Church Member.