Court rejects Arizona incumbent's bid on ballot count

The 133 ballots at the heart of a federal lawsuit in Arizona’s Second Congressional District will not be counted.

Judge Cindy Jorgenson of United States District Court denied a request Thursday by Rep. Ron Barber and three voters to halt the official election results certification until those ballots were counted.

They had been disqualified for a variety of reasons, but Kevin Hamilton, a lawyer for Barber, argued that voters had done everything they were supposed to do to cast them. In many cases, he said, poll workers gave incorrect information about voting locations.

The race for the Tucson-area district between Barber, a Democrat, and Martha McSally, his Republican opponent for the second time in two years, came down to 161 votes in favor of McSally.

She has claimed victory and attended freshman orientation in Washington.

Her lawyer said it was unfair to voters who correctly cast their ballot to delay certification.