PHOENIX — A Maricopa County judge denied a motion to dismiss a defamation lawsuit against Kari Lake, allowing the case to proceed.
Maricopa County Recorder Stephen Richer filed the lawsuit against Lake and the Lake for Governor Campaign for “harms they caused him and his family by making false and defamatory statements about him on social media and in speeches after their 2022 election loss,” according to a news release Wednesday.
Lake wanted the case dismissed, but a judge reportedly found various statements against Richer were more than “hyperbole” and “gave rise to actionable defamation claims.”
Earlier this year, a judge dismissed a legal claim in her challenge of her loss in the 2022 race for governor.
Lake also lost lawsuits over Phoenix’s electronic voting machines and ballot envelopes.
In October, she filed paperwork to run for US Senate in 2024.
