GOP emergency motion seeks to block 35,000 AZ voters from casting ballots
Days before early voting begins, GOP legislative leaders and national Republicans are asking a federal appeals court to allow laws that would block an estimated 35,000 Arizona voters from casting ballots this year.
The emergency motion to the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals seeks approval to let portions of two laws, passed in 2022, take effect. Those laws were blocked in May by U.S. District Court Judge Susan Bolton.
Those provisions:
Require documentary proof of citizenship for people who register to vote and indicate they only want to vote in federal, not state, elections.
Bar these federal-only voters from voting by mail.
Remove a backstop for voters who register to vote in state elections but who do not provide proof of citizenship.
State House Speaker Ben Toma, R-Glendale, and Senate President Warren Petersen, R-Gilbert, are joined in the motion by the Republican National Committee.
Why are Republicans asking for court action now?
The emergency stay is needed to protect state sovereignty in how elections are conducted, as well as remove policies that create a "competitive injury" for Republicans, the motion states. The injury stems from the fact that the percentage of Republican voters registered as federal-only is disproportionately smaller than the percentage of GOP voters statewide.
"The judicially mandated inclusion of these individuals (federal-only voters) in the presidential electorate necessarily impairs the relative competitive position of the Republican presidential nominee," the motion states.
There are 35,340 voters registered to cast ballots only in federal elections, according to the Arizona Secretary of State's office. About 12,000 are inactive, meaning they have not voted in recent elections.
While a federal judge's ruling in the broader case on this matter is already on appeal before the 9th Circuit, the lawmakers and RNC are seeking emergency action given the upcoming elections. Arizona's primary is July 30 and early voting begins Wednesday.
Secretary of State Adrian Fontes argued in a response that making last-minute changes to election procedures that would create chaos among voters and the wider public.
"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 stated in a declaration objecting to the emergency stay.
Why did a judge block the bills in the first place?
It's the latest development in the two-year battle over two bills that target Arizona's voter registration requirements. They were sponsored by then-state Rep. Jake Hoffman, a Queen Creek Republican who now serves in the state Senate, approved by the GOP majority and signed by then-Gov. Doug Ducey.
Judge Bolton issued a mixed ruling on the case in late February, which is now on appeal. It provides some wins and losses for both sides.
On May 2, she issued a permanent injunction blocking the three provisions related to providing documents to prove citizenship. Toma, Petersen and the RNC promptly asked her to put that decision on hold until the wider appeal can be decided by the 9th Circuit, and asked her to rule by June 14.
When their deadline passed, they turned to the emergency order, arguing they had to act given the pending elections.
But attorney Craig Morgan, writing for Fontes, noted the Republicans waited for 39 days after Bolton issued her May 2 injunction to turn to the emergency request, pushing right up against the start of voting in the July 30 primary.
"To be sure, this motion was filed far too late and to grant it under these facts would compromise the 2024 election cycle in Arizona," Morgan wrote.
Reach the reporter at [email protected] or at 602-228-7566 and follow her on Threads as well as on X, the platform formerly known as Twitter @maryjpitzl.
Support local journalism. Subscribe to azcentral.com today.
This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: GOP seeks emergency motion blocking 35K 'federal-only' Arizona voters