PHOENIX — Beau Lane's introducing himself as an outsider alternative to his Republican state legislator opponents in Arizona's Secretary of State race.
"This is an office and I think needs a fresh perspective and executive leadership," Lane said.
The native Arizonan runs advertising agency LaneTerralever, which he sees as a plus because the Secretary of State's Office handles services like registering trademarks and regulating notaries public.
"I think it's really important that the person running this organization has some business experience and has a customer service orientation to what this office provides to the business community," Lane said.
The secretary of state is also Arizona's CEO - the chief election officer.
"I think this position requires somebody who's a good administrator, who's a good leader, who can bring trust and faith and integrity to the system," Lane said.
Arizona's election system was deeply scrutinized after the 2020 presidential election.
Donald Trump made unfounded claims that errors or fraud in the Maricopa County vote cost him reelection.
"When people lose faith in open elections, the underpinnings of democracy, democracy become imperil and we can't let that happen," Lane added.
The other three Republican Secretary of State candidates played into the 'Stop the Steal' movement and called for an audit of the vote, although state Senator Michelle Ugenti-Rita later withdrew her support for that audit.
When asked if the 2020 election was fair, Lane replied, "I don't think it was flawed so badly that it was inaccurate, but it does need does need some work."
He proposes "common-sense reforms" such as better voter ID, doing away with dropboxes, and a better system for auditing. Lane supports using mail-in ballots.
ABC15 Investigator Melissa Blasius is covering the 2022 Secretary of State race. Got a news tip? Email Melissa at Melissa.Blasius@abc15.com and follow her on Twitter and Facebook.
ABC15 will be profiling candidates in many of the major races leading up to the upcoming Arizona primaries. For the latest Arizona election coverage, click here.
