Former Recorder Helen Purcell backs Maricopa County Board of Supervisors in election control dispute with Justin Heap

The longest serving recorder in Maricopa County history is siding with the Board of Supervisors in its fight with current Recorder Justin Heap over control of the county's elections.

Republican Helen Purcell, who held the office for seven terms, filed a brief with the Arizona Court of Appeals, asking it to pause a lower court ruling that handed Heap a legal victory in the ongoing dispute.

In that ruling, Maricopa County Superior Court Judge Scott Blaney found the board illegally took away the recorder's information technology staff and tools when it consolidated election operations.