Arizona Republicans look to block voting without proof of citizenship in presidential race

The Republican Party of Arizona, national Republicans, and Arizona GOP lawmakers are seeking an emergency order to block some voters who register with a federal voter registration form from voting in this year’s presidential race.

The groups believe U.S. District Judge Susan Bolton was incorrect in her ruling that federal law allows people without proof of citizenship to cast a ballot in the presidential race. Bolton ruled that federal voters could vote by mail and cast early ballots.

Republicans said the motion for an emergency stay is necessary to protect state sovereignty election law. The GOP also wishes to create “competitive injury” for Republicans, as they believe the injury stems from the fact a lower percentage of voters who use federal ballots are registered Republicans than that that accurately reflects the state. 

In Arizona, 34.5% of total active registered voters are Republicans, while 14.3% of those who used the federal form in Arizona were registered with the Republican Party.

“The judicially mandated inclusion of these individuals in the presidential electorate necessarily impairs the relative competitive position of the Republican presidential nominee,” said attorney Thomas Basile, representing the GOP.

According to the Arizona Secretary of State’s Office, 35,340 voters are registered to vote only in federal elections, and about 12,000 are inactive, which means they have not voted in recent elections.

The groups are looking for three provisions: to require proof of citizenship for people who register to vote who indicate a desire only to vote in federal, not state, elections, to ban federal-only voters from voting by mail, and to remove a backstop for voters who register to vote in state elections without providing proof of citizenship.

“In overriding the Legislature’s determination that ‘federal only’ voters may not vote for Arizona’s presidential electors or vote by mail, the injunction [issued by Bolton] distorts the competitive environment underpinning the 2024 election in a manner that is unfavorable to the Republican National Committee and Republican candidates,” Basile wrote.

Arizona State House Speaker Ben Toma and Senate President Warren Petersen, both Republicans, joined the motion by the Republican National Committee.

Craig Morgan, an attorney representing Arizona Secretary of State Adrian Fontes, said Fontes takes no formal position on the legal dispute. Morgan is urging the appellate judges not to grant the emergency stay as it is too close to the election. 

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“Election officials across Arizona are preparing for what is expected to be a very active 2024 election cycle,” he wrote in court filings. 

“Last minute statewide policy changes like those requested in the motion, no matter how small they may seem to some, can [and Secretary Fontes believes will] drastically impact how affected votes are collected and processed. Such confusion and chaos on the cusp of an election will undoubtedly cause voters to harbor doubts about our election procedures, our election officials, and our elections themselves,” he continued.