Republican Kari Lake, who was among the candidates in the recent midterms claiming Donald Trump's loss to Joe Biden in the 2020 presidential election was fraudulent, has refused to accept her own defeat in the race to become governor of Arizona.
With several media outlets calling the race in her opponent's favour this week, Ms Lake has reportedly travelled to Mar-a-Lago in Florida, home of Mr Trump.
In a two-minute video posted to YouTube on Thursday, she told supporters that she was “still in this fight”.
“For two years, I've been sounding the alarm about our broken election system here in Arizona,” Ms Lake says in the video. “And this past week has confirmed everything we've been saying.”
She decries various problems voters faced at the polls, including malfunctioning tabulating machines and printers.
She also appears to claim about half of all polling locations statewide were experiencing problems on election day - but NPR and AP said only between 20 and 25 per cent of locations in Maricopa County had reported issues.
Ms Lake also criticises how voters queued for hours to exercise their “sacred right to vote”, quoting the experiences of one man who tried to vote in three locations with uncertain success.
“Tens of thousands of Maricopa County voters were disenfranchised,” she says in the video.
“I am busy here collecting evidence and data. Rest assured that I have assembled the best and brightest legal team and we are exploring every avenue to correct the many wrongs that have been done this past week.”
County election officials said that all ballots were counted and that voters could go to any polling place in the district, many of which had few to no queues, with waiting times posted online.
Election officials traced the problems to a printer setting that sometimes led to ballots being printed too lightly for the on-site tabulators to read.
They said they used the same settings in the August primary and for pre-election testing, and there were no widespread problems.
About 17,000 ballots were not scanned at precinct-based vote counters and were instead placed in a collection box to be tallied by more sophisticated machines at the county’s election headquarters.
US midterm elections 2022 — in pictures
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US Vice President Kamala Harris speaks at a Democrat rally in Washington, as President Joe Biden and their spouses Jill Biden and Doug Emhoff listen. Bloomberg -
Bill Gates, chairman of the Maricopa County Board of Supervisors, speaks at the Maricopa County Tabulation and Election Centre in Phoenix, Arizona. Former astronaut and Democratic candidate Mark Kelly defeated his Republican rival in Arizona's senate race. Reuters -
Maricopa County recorder Stephen Richer, left, opens mail-in ballots at the Maricopa County Tabulation and Election Centre in Phoenix, Arizona. Ballots were being counted in Maricopa County three days after voters went to the polls for the midterm election in Arizona. AFP -
Election workers open mail-in ballots at the Maricopa County Tabulation and Election Centre in Phoenix, Arizona. AFP -
Staff scan ballots for the US midterm elections at the Maricopa County Tabulation and Election Centre in Phoenix, Arizona. Reuters -
Election workers open mail-in ballots at the Maricopa County Tabulation and Election Centre in Phoenix, Arizona. AFP -
In a divided America, a political campaign sign sits abandoned at the roadside in Phoenix, Arizona, two days after the midterms. AFP -
Ballots are processed in Las Vegas. Getty Images -
Election officials give a press conference in Maricopa County, Arizona, where ballots were still being counted two days after the midterms. AFP -
Ballots are carried to be scanned in Philadelphia. Reuters -
Mr Biden was all smiles during a news conference in the White House. Bloomberg -
An election worker sorts ballots in Las Vegas. AFP -
Election workers sort ballots at the Maricopa County Tabulation and Election Centre. AFP -
Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger holds a news conference in Atlanta. AP -
Los Angeles mayoral candidate Rick Caruso gets a hug on stage at his election night headquarters in Los Angeles. AP -
Paul Riley, father of Josh Riley, bows his head as election results come in at his son's election party in Binghamton, New York. Josh Riley, the Democratic candidate, ran against Republican Marc Molinaro. AP -
Michigan Democratic Governor Gretchen Whitmer speaks during election night in Detroit. AP -
Supporters cheer during an election night event for Democratic Senate candidate John Fetterman in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Mr Fetterman defeated Republican Senate candidate Dr Mehmet Oz. AFP -
Supporters watch news of a projected victory for Democratic candidate for Pennsylvania governor, Josh Shapiro, in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Reuters -
Republican J D Vance arrives with his wife Usha to declare victory in the Senatorial race in Columbus, Ohio. Reuters -
New York Governor Kathy Hochul attends an event to celebrate her victory in the US midterm elections. Reuters -
Representative Abigail Spanberger, of the Democratic party, speaks to supporters after her re-election, in Fredericksburg, Virginia. AP -
Democrat Wes Moore, second from left, hugs his daughter, Mia, centre, as his mother, Joy Thomas Moore, left, son, Jamie, second from right, and wife, Dawn, look on, after he was declared the winner of the Maryland race for governor. AP -
A supporter of Republican candidate Lee Zeldin reacts as media outlets predict results, in the race for governor, in favour of Democratic incumbent Kathy Hochul. AP -
Oklahoma Governor Kevin Stitt celebrates his re-election, at a Republican Party watch party in Oklahoma City. AP -
Democratic candidate for governor of Georgia Stacey Abrams speaks during her 2022 US midterm elections night party in Atlanta, Georgia. Her rival Brian Kemp won. Reuters -
A woman arrives before Florida's Republican Governor Ron DeSantis speaks to supporters during an election night party in Tampa. AP -
Voters wait in line at a polling station at the Lyndon B. Johnson School of Public Affairs in Austin, Texas. AP -
A voter goes to cast their vote after filling out their ballot at a polling station inside The Shed arts centre in Manhattan. AP -
A jogger runs past the Capitol Building in Washington. The US midterm elections are held every four years at the midpoint of each presidential term. EPA -
Florida's Republican Governor Ron DeSantis waves from the stage next to his wife Casey and children during his midterm elections party in Tampa. Reuters -
A man in costume arrives for a Republican party 'Save America' rally before the US midterm elections, in Miami, Florida. AFP -
US President Joe Biden, centre, poses for a selfie with supporters during a rally for Democratic candidates, including New York Governor Kathy Hochul, at Sarah Lawrence College in Bronxville, New York. AFP -
A man marks his ballot during early voting in Lansing, Michigan. Reuters -
A child attends a rally held by US President Joe Biden with Democratic nominee for Maryland Governor Wes Moore, Senator Chris Van Hollen and other Maryland Democrats, at Bowie State University. Reuters -
Supporters cheer during a rally for Democratic candidates at Sarah Lawrence College in Bronxville, New York. AFP -
State Representative Leslie Rossi poses by a giant cutout of former US President Donald Trump in front of the "Trump House", which she owns and created in 2016, in Youngstown, Pennsylvania. AFP -
Republican candidate for US Senate for Arizona Blake Masters speaks at a rally in Queen Creek, Arizona. EPA -
People in the crowd cheer during a campaign rally at Bowie State University in Maryland, which was attended President Joe Biden, the first lady, Jill Biden, Maryland Democratic gubernatorial candidate Wes Moore and Senator Chris Van Hollen. AP -
Republican candidate for Arizona governor Kari Lake arrives for a campaign stop, in Phoenix. Reuters -
Morgan Koetje and Nickolas Lentz from Reproductive Freedom for All, canvass a neighborhood in support of Proposal 3, a ballot measure that would codify the right to an abortion, one day before the midterm election in Dewitt, Michigan. Reuters -
Republican candidate for US Senate Herschel Walker takes a picture with supporters in Kennesaw, Georgia during a "Unite Georgia Bus Stop" campaign rally on the eve of the midterm elections. AFP -
Republican Senate candidate Val Demings speaks to supporters in Wilton Manors, Florida. AP -
Senate hopeful Mehmet Oz addresses campaign rally in Pennsburg, Pennsylvania. AP -
Former president Donald Trump speaks at a rally in support of the campaign of Ohio Senate candidate JD Vance, at Dayton International Airport. AP -
President Joe Biden and first lady Jill Biden arrive for the rally at Bowie State University, in Maryland. AP -
Voters pass by a sign outside a polling site in Warwick, Rhode Island after casting their ballots on the last day of early voting before the midterm election. AP -
Democratic candidate for Georgia governor Stacey Abrams speaks to volunteers during an election eve phone and text bank party in Atlanta. AP -
US Vice President Kamala Harris, left, points to Los Angeles mayoral candidate Representative Karen Bass, after speaking at a rally in Los Angeles. AP
After news of her probable defeat, media outlets reported that Ms Lake had travelled to Mar-a-Lago, days after Mr Trump announced his decision to run in the 2024 presidential race.
She has been a vocal supporter of Mr Trump and his unsupported claims of widespread election fraud in the presidential race.
Ms Lake has repeatedly slammed her opponent, Katie Hobbs — currently Arizona's Secretary of State — for refusing to recuse herself from the state elections board, saying her involvement was suspect.
The secretary of state creates election procedures and certifies equipment, but her office does not count ballots, a task that is done by the state’s 15 counties.
“Shouldn’t election officials be impartial?” Ms Lake tweeted before the election was called. “The guys running the election have made it their mission to defeat America First Republicans. Unbelievable.”
The National reports from Arizona — video
Ms Hobbs faced demands to step down in the months after the 2020 presidential election, when the state went to President Joe Biden.
“This fight to save our republic has just begun,” Ms Lake concludes in the video. “I love you, Arizona, and I love you, America.”
The Associated Press contributed to this report
