Court rules in favor of no proof of citizenship registration

A federal judge has issued an order instructing Arizona to stop requiring proof of citizenship from people who submit a federal voter registration form to register to vote. The order, by U.S. District Court Chief Judge Roslyn Silver, followed a ruling by the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals that Arizona violated the National Voter Registration Act when it proof of citizenship from registrants who submitted the federal form.

In June, the U.S. Supreme Court denied Arizona’s request to block the Ninth Circuit decision and prevent the lower court from carrying out the decision. MALDEF says that the ruling means a “more inclusive process in coming elections.”

In this case, Gonzalez v. Arizona, the Ninth Circuit en banc struck down critical provisions of an Arizona law that restricted voter registration to those who could provide proof of citizenship. MALDEF challenged the 2004 Arizona law, Proposition 200, as unconstitutional because it required people “to produce paperwork in order to register to vote,” according to MALDEF.

Following the Ninth’s Circuit’s en banc decision, the State of Arizona filed an emergency request with the U.S. Supreme Court to stay the mandate from the Ninth Circuit. Arizona’s request was denied on June 28, allowing the case to move back to the federal district court for a decision on the remedy.

The District Court decided today that Arizona and its counties cannot use Proposition 200 to reject registrants using the federal form. By August 21, 2012 the counties must go back and add to the voter rolls all the people who registered to vote using the federal form during the past year.

Additionally, the State and its counties must ensure widespread distribution of the federal form and no later than August 31, 2012, must make the federal form available where they make the state form available, including websites.

Arizona’s registration form requires proof of citizenship. The Court found that the state is free to demand proof of citizenship when someone registers to vote using a form prepared by the Secretary of State’s Office.

MALDEF originally filed this case on behalf of individual voters and voter registration applicants as well as the following organizations: Southwest Voter Registration Education Project, Valle del Sol, Friendly House, Chicanos Por La Causa, the Arizona Hispanic Community Forum, ACORN, Project Vote, and Common Cause. Danny Ortega of Ortega Law Firm P.C., and Karl Sandstrom of Perkins Coie are co-counsel with MALDEF in the case.

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