PHOENIX – The Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals denied a request for an injunction pending appeal in a case involving the use of electronic signatures to qualify voter initiatives for the 2020 ballot. The Plaintiffs, which included two committees proposing initiatives relating to election procedures and healthcare, hoped to force the State to accept signatures collected through E-Qual, the State’s online petition system.
The Plaintiffs sought a preliminary injunction and temporary restraining order.
On Monday May 5, the Ninth Circuit denied Plaintiffs’ request for an injunction pending appeal. The Ninth Circuit concluded, once again, the Plaintiffs “having failed to challenge the Arizona constitutional requirement of in-person signatures cannot get the redress from the court they now seek by only challenging the statute at issue.”
Arizona’s Constitution has, since statehood, mandated in-person execution of signatures, according to the Arizona Attorney General’s Office. Yet, Secretary of State Katie Hobbs made it known that she wouldn’t oppose the request made by the plaintiffs.
As a result, Arizona Attorney General Mark Brnovich was tasked to defend the State and its Constitution.
The district court denied Plaintiffs’ request for injunctive relief on April 17, finding they failed to challenge the in-person requirement of the Arizona Constitution, thus failing to establish the redressability of their alleged injury. The district court explained that “the signature requirements Plaintiffs seek to displace have been a part of Arizona’s constitutional and electoral landscape for over a century. These requirements reflect a considered judgment, which has stood the test of time, about how best to prevent electoral fraud and promote civic engagement.” The court further explained that “a ‘reasonably diligent’ committee could have placed its initiative on the November 2020 ballot despite the Title 19 requirements and the COVID-19 outbreak.”
Plaintiffs appealed to the Ninth Circuit on April 20th, and sought an emergency injunction pending appeal on April 22. The Secretary again indicated that she “did not oppose the narrow relief sought in the District Court by Plaintiffs-Appellants.”
“Special interests should not be able to use the pandemic as an excuse to sweep away a century-old fixture of Arizona’s Constitution simply because others will not stand up in defense of it,” said Attorney General Mark Brnovich.