SAN ANTONIO – After a bruising defeat in the runoff election for Bexar County GOP chair, Cynthia Brehm announced on Thursday she will not certify the results.
In a news release, Brehm argued that the Bexar County Elections Department did not produce signed official chain of custody documentation for 31 voting centers’ early voting data, did not post a guard to secure early voting data and accessed early voting data prior to tabulation.
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Brehm also claimed she witnessed conflicts of interest and cited “an active investigation ongoing into the results” of the primary election held on March 3.
“In summary, I Cynthia Brehm, have determined that every aspect of this election has been severely compromised,” Brehm said. “Therefore, I cannot in good conscious (sic) certify the results of this election.”
Republican voters in Bexar County largely rejected Brehm in favor of her opponent, John Austin. Austin received nearly two-thirds of the votes, election data showed. Austin declined to comment on Brehm’s announcement.
Brehm’s refusal to certify the votes is unlikely to succeed. According to state election code, the party’s state chair “may perform any administrative duty of the county chair ... that has not been performed in the time required by law.”
Allen West recently became the party’s chairman in Texas after beating James Dickey, who was fighting for his second term.
Before the runoff election, Brehm stoked controversy when she shared a Facebook post suggesting George Floyd’s death was staged for political reasons. Floyd was killed in May after former Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin placed his knee on Floyd’s neck for nearly nine minutes. Chauvin has been in charged with murder in connection with the case.
The Floyd conspiracy theory prompted calls for her resignation from several prominent figures in the Republican Party, including Texas. Gov. Greg Abbott. She refused.
Prior to the primary election in March, Brehm stated concerns with the elections department’s process, and floated the possibility of holding a separate primary because of it.
The Bexar County Elections Department did not respond to requests seeking comment on Brehm’s allegations on Thursday.