Trump’s ex-lawyer Jenna Ellis agrees to cooperate in Arizona elector case

PHOENIX — Arizona Attorney General Kris Mayes reached a cooperation agreement Monday with Jenna Ellis, who was a legal adviser to Donald Trump’s 2020 campaign and was one of 18 indicted in April on felony charges related to alleged efforts to try to subvert President Biden’s victory in the state four years ago, according to prosecutors.

The Democratic attorney general agreed to drop nine felony charges against Ellis in exchange for his full cooperation with the investigation into the Republican Party’s plan to try to deliver Arizona’s 11 electoral votes to Trump instead of the rightful winner, Biden.

The deal allows Ellis to avoid a potential prison sentence in exchange for providing prosecutors with evidence that could implicate other defendants. He could provide information about former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani’s knowledge and involvement in the election strategy. Under the deal, Ellis has also agreed to testify “fully and truthfully” at any future trial. He will also provide documents and any other materials tied to the election strategy that could help state prosecutors obtain favorable verdicts for them in the high-profile case.

“This settlement represents a significant step forward in our case,” Mayes said in a statement. “I thank Ms. Ellis for her cooperation with our investigation and prosecution. Her insights are invaluable and will greatly assist the State in proving its case in court.”

An attorney for Ellis did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Arizona was one of seven states Biden won and where Republican electors met on Dec. 14, 2020, to sign certificates purporting to confirm Trump as the true winner of each of the states. Trump supporters were preparing to subpoena the documents signed by Republican electors as a way to challenge Biden’s victory when Congress convened on Jan. 6, 2021, according to prosecutors.

Authorities in several of those states, including Arizona, have filed criminal charges against the electors. All of the defendants in the Arizona case have pleaded not guilty, including the 11 Republicans who allegedly falsely claimed Trump won the state, Giuliani and Boris Epshteyn, a key adviser to Trump’s 2020 and 2024 presidential campaigns. They are each charged with nine felonies, including conspiracy, forgery and fraudulent schemes and artifices.

The Arizona case was the second round of charges against Ellis and others in the case, who were also charged alongside Trump in Georgia last year. Ellis pleaded guilty in October to illegally conspiring to overturn Trump’s 2020 election loss in Georgia and has been cooperating with prosecutors.

In Arizona, Ellis met with prosecutors on June 17 for a pitch session, according to the agreement — an interview in which a prosecutor and defense attorney meet with a person to decide whether he or she has valuable information to offer to an investigation, the kind that could lead to a plea deal. These meetings are often called “queen for a day” sessions because the person being questioned’s answers won’t be used against him or her unless he or she lies.

In the critical period after Trump’s defeat, Ellis was in contact with key figures in the election strategy outside and inside Arizona, according to the April indictment and other released records.

Ellis joined Giuliani, then Trump’s personal attorney, in making baseless allegations of widespread malfeasance in states Trump lost. He accompanied Giuliani to Phoenix for a meeting, where baseless claims of election fraud circulated as Trump called in to speak to the crowd. Ellis also stood by Giuliani’s side during a meeting with then-Arizona House Speaker Russell “Rusty” Bowers, who testified before the House committee investigating the Jan. 6, 2021, attack that Giuliani repeatedly tried to persuade him to help reverse Trump’s 10,457-vote loss in the state.

“We have a lot of theories, but we don’t have the evidence,” Bowers recalled Giuliani telling him and others present.