By Howard Fischer
Capitol Media Services
PHOENIX -- A Republican lawmaker who wants to be the state's chief elections officer wants Arizona voters to have to provide documented proof of citizenship to vote in federal elections despite a federal appellate court ruling voiding a similar law.
In a new proposal, Rep. Alexander Kolodin of Scottsdale seeks to insert a provision in the Arizona Constitution to say that "only citizens'' can register and vote "in any public election in Arizona.'' And it spells out that early ballots are available only to those who have provided citizenship proof.
But there's more.
Some of what is in HCR 2001 already is law in Arizona, like counting only ballots received by the close of polls on Election Day. And anyone casting a ballot in person has to provide identification.
But the measure also would:
- disallow early voting after 7 p.m. on the Friday before Election Day to keep people from dropping off their early ballots at polling places, delaying final election results;
- require people who sign up for early voting to have to reverify their address every two years.
- outlaw all-mail elections;
- guarantee the right to vote in-person on Election Day at "conveniently located polling places,'' something that is not defined.
Whatever the merits of the proposal, there is a political component.
Kolodin is running for secretary of state. And his anticipated foe is incumbent Democrat Adrian Fontes who has openly opposed much of what is in the proposals.
Fontes told Capitol Media Services that what Kolodin wants is just more of what Republicans have pushed in the past -- and been unable to enact because of vetoes by Gov. Katie Hobbs. And he said there are specific problems.
"If enacted, this legislation would make it harder to vote by mail and harder to vote generally, exactly the opposite direction of where we should be headed,'' he said. Fontes said eliminating some option for early voters to simply drop off their ballots also will result in longer lines at polling places.
And he predicted the provisions, if approved, would cause voter confusion and lead to litigation.
Still, Kolodin is not acting alone. Sen. Shawnna Bolick, R-Phoenix, introduced a mirror proposal in the Senate though she did not respond to multiple requests to discuss the provisions.
What could prove the most controversial, at least legally, are those sections about citizenship proof to vote in all elections and to get a mail-in ballot.
Voters passed a measure in 2004 mandating such proof.
That was voided when courts ruled that the National Voter Registration Act spells out that people can register to vote in federal elections simply by using a form prepared by the Election Assistance Commission. And that form requires only that would-be registrants avow, under penalty of perjury, they are eligible to vote.
Lawmakers tried again in 2022 with a narrower bill -- one applying the proof-of-citizenship requirement only to the presidential race -- in the wake of the 2020 election where Donald Trump lost to Joe Biden by 10,457 votes in Arizona.
Proponents pointed out that, at that time, there were about 21,000 Arizonans who registered using that form designed by the Election Assistance Commission. And they argued those "federal-only voters'' could have affected the election, though no proof was provided that those using the federal form were not citizens.
U.S. District Court Judge Susan Bolton found that version no more acceptable.
"The plain language of the National Voter Registration Act reflects an intent to regulate all elections for federal offices, including for president or vice president,'' she wrote. "And binding precedent indicates that Congress has the power to control registration for presidential elections.''
She also rebuffed the provision precluding those federal-only voters from casting early ballots.
All that was affirmed by the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals.
Kolodin acknowledged the court rulings. But he told Capitol Media Services there has never been a final ruling by the U.S. Supreme Court.
And something else has changed: The U.S. Department of Justice, which under Biden had sided with challengers to the 2022 law, pulled out of the case in April after Trump took office in January.
"The United States no longer seeks to press its claims in this case,'' wrote Daniel Freeman, an attorney with the Civil Rights Division. But it remains unclear whether the decision of the Trump administration to step aside now -- after there have been several rulings -- will aid the state in its continued efforts to block federal only voters from casting a ballot in 2028.
Other provisions in the measure are designed to deal with separate election-related issues.
One is how quickly Arizonans know who won close races.
Right now, Arizonans who get an early ballot can drop them off at polling places and county election offices right up until 7 p.m. on Election Day.
Only thing is, these envelopes cannot be opened and the ballots counted until the signatures on the outside are verified. And that can't happen until election workers are done tallying the votes actually cast in person on Election Day.
Arizona has developed a reputation of being among the the last states in the nation -- if not the last -- to have final election returns.
It occurred in 2022 when it took days to confirm that Democrat Katie Hobbs had beaten Republican Kari Lake. And the situation repeated itself in 2024 when delays in processing ballots left many wondering whether Democrat Kamala Harris could make up her vote deficit against Trump.
Still, the option has provided popular among at least some voters: In 2024, 265,000 Arizonans did exactly that out of more than 3.4 million votes cast.
Kolodin defended the change.
"It tightens timelines and options to produce faster, cleaner results,'' he said. And he it still preserves the option of voters who wait until the last minute to go to the polls on Election Day and cast an in-person ballot.
Then there's the requirement for those on what's known as the "active early voting list'' to reverify their addresses between biennial elections.
Generally speaking, people can sign up just once. But they drop off the list if they don't vote for at least one candidate in two consecutive election cycles and then fail to respond to an official notice from election officials.
Kolodin said that's not enough.
"Regular, affirmative address confirmation ensures that ballots are sent to the right place and reduces undeliverable mail,'' he said, saying it "keep records current.''
What may have greater effect is the provision guaranteeing people have a right to vote in person. That would undermine the all-mail elections, like the ones held just this month in local races and for school bond and override issues.
Kolodin said it also causes problems, like a 2023 all-mail election in Cochise County to approve a tax to fund construction of a new jail. As it turned out, ballots were not sent to 11,000 "inactive'' voters -- those still registered but who had not voted in recent elections and a judge ordered the election to be redone.
Less clear is the requirement in the measure for "convenient'' in-person voting locations.
Kolodin said he's heard complaints from people living on the outskirts of urban areas as well as rural and reservation residents about long drives to go vote -- something that they would have to do if there are no all-mail elections. But the measure contains no definition of what any of that means.
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