Arizona indicts 18 Trump allies in election interference case

A grand jury in the US state of Arizona has indicted 18 people on fraud and other charges, over their alleged attempts to overturn the results of the 2020 presidential election.

The indictment on Wednesday names eleven Republican Party members in Arizona.

It also includes seven other defendants whose names were not immediately released. The Associated Press says it was able to determine who they are based on their descriptions in the indictment.

It says one of them is Rudy Giuliani, Trump's former personal lawyer, and another is Mark Meadows, who was the White House chief of staff at the time of the election.

In the 2020 election, Joe Biden won in Arizona. The indictment says that the eleven Arizona Republicans signed a certificate falsely stating that they were "duly elected and qualified" electors and claimed that Trump carried the state.

The former president was mentioned in the indictment as an "unindicted co-conspirator."

Arizona State Attorney General Kris Mayes said, "I will not allow American democracy to be undermined." She added the election in Arizona was free and fair.

Arizona is the latest state to indict Trump allies in connection with the 2020 election.