Fox 10 Phoenix, a former employer of Republican Kari Lake, ran a graphic that incorrectly declared her Democrat opponent, Katie Hobbs, the winner of Arizona’s gubernatorial race nearly two weeks before election day.
According to a video of the incident shared in a tweet from Turning Point USA founder and President Charlie Kirk, the graphic showed a vote total of 1,252,437 and a checkmark next to Hobbs’s name and 1,102,326 next to Lake’s name.
“Fox 10 called the election for @KatieHobbs TWELVE DAYS before Election Day,” Lake tweeted after the broadcast.
Fox 10 Phoenix did not respond to Breitbart News’s comment request, but the station sent out a tweet stating the graphic showed “test results.”
“These were generated by the Associated Press which distributes results to clients,” the tweet added.
“This graphic was never meant to go on air — the numbers were only part of a test. The station has taken steps to make sure this cannot happen again,” a subsequent tweet from the station read.
Lauren Easton, the global director of media relations and corporate communications for the Associated Press (AP), said in a statement to Breitbart News that test results sent to clients are both “[r]andom” and “clearly labeled.”
“Before any election AP sends clearly labeled test data to customers as part of routine testing,” wrote Easton in an email. “The data is randomly generated by a computer and is not based on any predictive analysis or polling. Random numbers are provided to allow customers to test their systems in preparation for Election Day.”
The incident comes days after a Fox affiliate in Michigan cut to commercials during Republican Tudor Dixon’s opening remarks in a Michigan gubernatorial debate.
Lake noted that Fox 10 Phoenix broadcasted the graphic soon after a press conference where she blasted reporters and media outlets for “trying to influence an election” with their coverage of the break-in at Katie Hobbs’s campaign headquarters.
“WOAH.. right after my press conference going after the Media. Retaliation?” Lake wondered in a tweet.
“She put out a defamatory statement, and you all ran with it,” Lake told reporters at the press conference. “You didn’t do your journalistic duty; it was malpractice of journalism like I’ve never seen before, and it was an effort, I believe, to influence this election.”
Alleged burglar Daniel Mota Dos Reis, 36, was arrested in connection with the incident on Thursday, as local media noted. The Western Journal reported having found his Facebook page, where he describes himself as a Democrat and an immigrant from Angola.
On Wednesday, prior to the arrest, Hobbs’s campaign manager Nicole Demont released a statement on the break-in that invoked Lake.
“Let’s be clear: for nearly two years Kari Lake and her allies have been spreading dangerous misinformation and inciting threats against anyone they see fit,” said De-Mont.
The Arizona Democratic Party quickly followed suit, calling the break-in “a direct result of Kari Lake and fringe Republicans spreading lies and hate and inciting violence.”
“They put defamatory statements, lies about me, and the reason that they did that is because this is the real news yesterday that none of you wanted to cover; we’re 11 points up,” Lake said, holding up a picture of the poll at the press conference.
“You’re in a frenzied panic because your chosen candidate is not winning. You didn’t want to cover this, so you had to run with a complete garbage bullshit story,” she added.