AZ secretary of state candidate and state Rep. Mark Finchem shares QAnon propaganda on Gab

Written by Eric Hananoki

Published

Mark Finchem on War Room: Pandemic

Mark Finchem is an Arizona state representative and frequent right-wing media guest who recently announced that he’s running for secretary of state. Finchem is also a QAnon conspiracy theorist who has posted a message from “Q” and reposted numerous QAnon slogans to his Gab account this year. 

Gab is a far-right social media network that is a haven for, among other things, white supremacist, anti-Semitic, violent, and conspiratorial content. The white supremacist who allegedly murdered 11 people in the 2018 Tree of Life synagogue shooting in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, posted anti-Semitic and violent content on his verified Gab account. Gab has also welcomed followers of the violence-linked QAnon conspiracy theory. 

Finchem has gained attention because he has repeatedly pushed conspiracy theories about the 2020 presidential election. He’s a regular guest on the Steve Bannon program War Room: Pandemic and was paid by former President Donald Trump’s campaign for post-election work in Arizona. 

Finchem attended the January 6 insurrection in Washington, D.C., though he said he did not enter the Capitol. The Arizona Republican has ties to far-right groups, including the violent Oath Keepers militia group. 

Vice News’ Cameron Joseph profiled Finchem on April 12 and reported that he has posted “QAnon-related content” on Gab and “also touted QAnon theories himself” during a recent media appearance:

“They're finding so many kids. We’ve got a serious problem in this nation. And that's one of the things that disturbs me so much about our current congressional state of affairs. There's a lot of people involved in a pedophile network and the distribution of children, and that makes me absolutely sick,” [Finchem] said during a March 4 appearance on the religious conservative network Victory News. “And unfortunately, there's a whole lot of elected officials that are involved in that.”

Joseph documented that Finchem’s Gab account has the following reposts, which include QAnon messages: 

  • Finchem reposted a message that forwarded a conspiracy theory meme about Dr. Anthony Fauci and hydroxychloroquine and included the QAnon hashtags “WWG1WGA” and “TheGreatAwakening.” 
  • Finchem reposted a message that asked: “Did you notice that OANN [One America News Network] 'unscrambled' is ANON? And did not Q tell us, ‘We ARE the news now’?”

Media Matters subsequently examined Finchem’s Gab account and found additional QAnon content. On February 13, Finchem posted a message on Gab attacking Biden and the media and embedded a December 7, 2019, post from “Q.” 

Mark Finchem QAnon post about the media

From Mark Finchem's Gab account. 

Finchem reposted a message about a “full forensic audit of the 2020 Election Vote in Maricopa County,” Arizona, that had hashtags including “WWG1WGA,” “Qanon,” and “QArmy.” He additionally reposted a message that included the hashtags “WWG1WGA” and “TheGreatAwakening” and a right-wing editorial cartoon about tech companies.

Media Matters has documented how the Republican Party, including state elected officials, have embraced QAnon. 

In addition to QAnon conspiracy theories, Finchem on Gab also endorsed the conspiracy theory that the Clintons killed actor Paul Walker.