What you need to know about the GOP-led election audit in Arizona

The Arizona audit is turning heads after the Department of Justice wrote to officials over concerns about violating federal law.

Arizona's November election is in the headlines again, after the Republican-led Senate there successfully used its subpoena power to obtain Maricopa County's 2.1 million general election ballots in order to audit the presidential and Senate races. But experts said the process is unprecedented when it comes to auditing an election -- which was signed off on by Democratic Secretary of State Katie Hobbs, Republican Gov. Doug Ducey and Republican Attorney General Mark Brnovich back in November. The audit cannot retroactively change the results of the election, but experts worry that the act of the audit itself will sow doubt about the results. Ducey refused to entertain former President Donald Trump's various nationwide election conspiracies -- putting him in hot water with his fellow Republican -- and certified President Joe Biden and Sen. Mark Kelly's wins. The election results moved the state out of safe Republican territory. The state Senate hired a private firm that has never worked in the election realm before. Some of their practices, such as the storage and handling of ballots, have raised concerns with the Department of Justice's Civil Rights Division, which weighed in late last week. In a letter to officials, the DOJ division expressed its concerns about possible violations of ballot preservation laws and voter intimidation. Following that letter, the Senate has since scrapped part of the plan to do follow-up canvassing at voters' homes, but assured the Justice Department that it had plans to do so in a safe and legal manner.