Current:Home > ScamsLack of citizenship documents might keep many from voting in Arizona state and local races -AssetLink
Lack of citizenship documents might keep many from voting in Arizona state and local races
View
Date:2025-04-14 07:21:16
PHOENIX (AP) — Nearly 100,000 voters who haven’t submitted citizenship documents might be prevented from participating in Arizona’s state and local elections, a significant number for the battleground state where races have been tight.
The announcement Tuesday of an error in state-run databases that reclassified voters comes days before county election officials are required to mail ballots to uniformed and overseas voters.
Democratic Secretary of State Adrian Fontes and Stephen Richer, the Republican recorder for Maricopa County, disagree over whether the voters should have access to the full ballot or the ability to vote only in federal races.
Arizona is unique among states in that it requires voters to prove their citizenship to participate in local and state races. Those who haven’t but have sworn to it under the penalty of law are allowed to participate only in federal elections.
Arizona considers drivers’ licenses issued after October 1996 to be valid proof of citizenship. However, a system coding error marked 97,000 voters who obtained licenses before 1996 — roughly 2.5% of all registered voters — as full-ballot voters, state officials said.
While the error between the state’s voter registration database and the Motor Vehicle Division won’t impact the presidential race, that number of voters could tip the scales in hotly contested races in the state Legislature where Republicans have a slim majority in both chambers.
It also could affect ballot measures before voters, including the constitutional right to abortion and criminalizing noncitizens for entering Arizona through Mexico at any location other than a port of entry.
Fontes said in a statement that the 97,000 voters are longtime Arizonans and mostly Republicans who should be able to fully participate in the general election.
Maricopa County Recorder Stephen Richer, who said his office identified the issue earlier this month, said he plans to sue Fontes’ office Tuesday afternoon, asking a court to classify the voters as federal-only.
“It is my position that these registrants have not satisfied Arizona’s documented proof of citizenship law, and therefore can only vote a ‘FED ONLY’ ballot,” Richer wrote on the social platform X.
veryGood! (8947)
Related
- Most popular books of the week: See what topped USA TODAY's bestselling books list
- In Georgia, Kemp and Abrams underscore why governors matter
- Mindy Kaling Reveals Her Exercise Routine Consists Of a Weekly 20-Mile Walk or Hike
- Robert De Niro Speaks Out After Welcoming Baby No. 7
- Taylor Swift Cancels Austria Concerts After Confirmation of Planned Terrorist Attack
- Too many Black babies are dying. Birth workers in Kansas fight to keep them alive
- Amid vaccine shortages, Lebanon faces its first cholera outbreak in three decades
- Get a $49 Deal on $110 Worth of Tarte Makeup That Blurs the Appearance of Pores and Fine Lines
- 'Meet me at the gate': Watch as widow scatters husband's ashes, BASE jumps into canyon
- Jenna Ortega Is Joining Beetlejuice 2—and the Movie Is Coming Out Sooner Than You Think
Ranking
- Krispy Kreme offers a free dozen Grinch green doughnuts: When to get the deal
- Today’s Climate: August 5, 2010
- ‘We Must Grow This Movement’: Youth Climate Activists Ramp Up the Pressure
- Tom Holland says he's taking a year off after filming The Crowded Room
- 'Survivor' 47 finale, part one recap: 2 players were sent home. Who's left in the game?
- Special counsel Jack Smith says he'll seek speedy trial for Trump in documents case
- Too many Black babies are dying. Birth workers in Kansas fight to keep them alive
- Antarctica Ice Loss Tripled in 5 Years, and That’s Raising Sea Level Risks
Recommendation
'Most Whopper
Get That “No Makeup Makeup Look and Save 50% On It Cosmetics Powder Foundation
More Americans are struggling to pay the bills. Here's who is suffering most.
Today’s Climate: August 4, 2010
Taylor Swift Cancels Austria Concerts After Confirmation of Planned Terrorist Attack
Jennifer Garner Reveals Why Her Kids Prefer to Watch Dad Ben Affleck’s Movies
Jewelry chain apologizes for not accepting U.S. service member's Puerto Rico driver's license as valid U.S. ID
‘We Must Grow This Movement’: Youth Climate Activists Ramp Up the Pressure