Americans United for Democracy, Integrity and Transparency in Elections (AUDIT USA) is a left-of-center election activism organization that co-signed a letter written by left-of-center Scrutineers and the National Voting Rights Task Force in support of the “For the People Act,” a Biden administration legislative priority that would federalize election administration. ¹

AUDIT USA also supports independent audits of the U.S. election process and the retention of digital ballot images as public record. ²

AUDIT USA’s special counsel is Chris Sautter. In 2018, Sautter represented the Democratic Party of Florida in two statewide recounts. He also worked on the 2016 presidential campaign of Hillary Clinton (D) on behalf of then-Vice President Al Gore’s (D) unsuccessful 2000 recount efforts in Florida. ³

History and Leadership

Americans United for Democracy, Integrity and Transparency in Elections (AUDIT USA) was formed in 2016 with the expansion of Audit Arizona. ⁴ Audit Arizona was founded in 2004 by John Brakey and Arlene Leaf. ⁵

AUDIT USA was officially incorporated in Arizona in 2018 ⁶ and received tax-exempt status from the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) in 2019. ⁷

As of 2023, Brakey is the director of AUDIT USA. ⁸ In 2016, Brakey filed a lawsuit in Maricopa County, Arizona, alleging election officials allowed votes to be cast illegally. He has also contested elections in Pima County, Arizona, ⁹ and shared an article on Twitter that claimed that then-President Donald Trump could “steal Florida and the Nation” with rigged vote scanners in the 2020 presidential election. ¹⁰

AUDIT USA’s special counsel is Chris Sautter. In 2018, Sautter represented the Democratic Party of Florida in two statewide recounts. He worked on the 2016 presidential campaign of Hillary Clinton (D) and the 2016 presidential campaign of Sen. Bernie Sanders (D-VT). Sautter was the lead recount attorney for Al Franken (D-MN) in the 2008 U.S. Senate Recount and worked on behalf of then-Vice President Al Gore’s (D) unsuccessful 2000 recount efforts in Florida. ¹¹

Activities and Funding

Americans United for Democracy, Integrity and Transparency in Elections (AUDIT USA) is a left-of-center election activist organization that supports independent audits of the U.S. election process. ¹² The group organizing volunteers to support its efforts  ¹³ and supports changes to the U.S. election process that include the creation and analysis of digital scans of cast ballots to create a digital voting record. ¹⁴

AUDIT USA supports hand-marked paper ballots, opposes ballot-marking devices (BMDs) for all votes, and supports efforts in several states to require the retention of ballot images and efforts to make those images public record. ¹⁵

AUDIT USA co-signed a letter by left-of-center election activist groups Scrutineers and National Voting Rights Task Force  that supported the “For the People Act,” a Biden administration legislative priority which would federalize election administration. ¹⁶

In 2022, AUDIT USA director John Brakey worked with Transparent Elections NC to help that organization develop its advocacy goals and plans. ¹⁷  AUDIT USA developed ballot image auditing instructions and tools. The organization recommends individuals visit the website of left-of-center election activist organization Scrutineers to learn about election-related issues in 2020. ¹⁸

In 2018, AUDIT USA director John Brakey hosted an event regarding what his group perceives as voter suppression and election fraud undermining elections. Speakers at this forum included representatives from the left-wing Progressive Democrats of America, People Demanding Action, and unsuccessful 2018 and 2016 Congressional candidate Tim Canova (D-FL). ¹⁹

In 2016, AUDIT USA litigation forced Arizona counties to preserve ballot images. Ongoing litigation in Arizona and Florida would require Arizona to make ballot images public record and require Florida counties to retain ballot images. ²⁰

AUDIT USA is a member organization of the left-of-center election activist organization Scrutineers. ²¹ In 2019, AUDIT USA representatives attended a protest opposing detention facilities for illegal immigrants operated by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), the federal agency responsible for combatting cross-border crime and illegal border crossings. ²²

AUDIT USA recommends its supporters engage with left-of-center groups such as Citizens’ Oversight Projects, Protect California Ballots, Coalition for Good Governance, Michigan Election Reform Alliance (MERA), and Wisconsin Election Integrity to address election-related concerns at the state-level. ²³

Funding

Americans United for Democracy, Integrity and Transparency in Elections (AUDIT USA) receives its funding from individual donations and grants. ²⁴

In 2019, AUDIT USA reported revenue of $318,500 and expenses of $143,937. ²⁵ AUDIT USA reported revenue of $105,210 and expenses of $91,374 in 2018. ²⁶

In 2019, AUDIT USA received $35,000 from the left-of-center Threshold Foundation. ²⁷

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