The chances that non-U.S. citizens will become registered to vote in Arizona will be greatly reduced if Gov. Doug Ducey signs an election integrity bill that cleared the state Senate on Wednesday.
House Bill 2492 specifies that an Arizona resident must provide satisfactory evidence of U.S. citizenship before a county recorder may register the person to vote. The bill also requires a county recorder to cancel a current voter registration file upon confirmation that the registered voter is not a U.S. citizen.
HB2492 sponsored by Rep. Jake Hoffman (R-LD12) cleared the House last month and now awaits the governor’s signature. If signed into law, the bill would prevent someone who newly applies to be a registered voter in Arizona from voting in local and state elections until satisfactory evidence of citizenship is provided.
Hoffman’s bill also prohibits current and future Federal-Only Voters from utilizing early voting or vote-by-mail options, and specifies that a county recorder who knowingly fails to reject a voter registration application which does not comply with the citizenship requirement is guilty of a class 6 felony.
Getting HB2492 through both chambers was done without any support of Democrats. A frustrated Sen. Warren Petersen challenged his colleagues for not understanding the seriousness of having non-U.S. citizens voting in American elections.
“What is the issue? The issue is making sure that citizens of this country are voting and if you’re not a citizen of this country you’re not allowed to vote,” Petersen said, noting there are currently more than 35,000 registered voters in Arizona whose citizenship has not been confirmed.
“I hope we all agree that only citizens should vote in our elections,” added Petersen (R-LD12).
Sergio Arellano, a small business owner and community leader, is among those who agreed with Petersen’s position. He expressed gratitude to Hoffman and the other lawmakers who supported HB2492.
“I fought and bled for this county and my fellow countrymen and women. I didn’t make those sacrifices so that people, who are not citizens could vote in our country,” Arellano said. He added that those who voted for HB2492 “demonstrated that they recognize the immense value of our right to vote and the sacrifices made to secure our freedom to cast our votes.”
The lack of support for the bill from even one Democratic lawmaker was appalling, according to Arellano.
“Whatever happened to the resolution the Democrats passed overwhelmingly over 10 years ago calling for the same thing they stand against now?” he asked.
Arellano was referring to Democrats who supported Prop 200 back in 2004 to require the state’s county recorders to reject any new voter registration applications from Arizona residents which did not include proof of citizenship. Such applications can be made on state or federal forms.
Ken Blackwell, former Ambassador to President Donald Trump and Chairman of the Center for Election Integrity, discu https://t.co/GnMZ30ZxmR
— James T Harris (@JamesTHarris) March 24, 2022
AZ State Rep. Jake Hoffman discusses his latest legislation that requires individuals to provide proof of citizensh https://t.co/YY1pAnquY3
— James T Harris (@JamesTHarris) March 24, 2022
A U.S. Supreme Court ruling in 2014 mandated the state to accept federal voter registration forms from Arizona residents even if there was no proof of citizenship. Voters who registered in that manner are commonly referred to as Federal Only Voters and are only allowed to vote for President, U.S. House, and U.S. Senate.
In 2019, Prop 200 was further gutted when Arizona Secretary of State Michelle Reagan agreed that the state registration forms would also be accepted without proof of citizenship, despite the clear intent of voters back in 2004.
In explaining his yes vote, Senate Majority Whip Sonny Borelli said on Wednesday that allowing non-U.S. citizens to register as Federal Only Voters “nullifies” the votes of legal citizens. HB2492, he said, is about voter protection.
“We want to make sure that the legal citizen has the right to vote and the illegal vote does not negate the legal vote,” said Borelli (R-LD5) who expressed his confusion at why the ACLU does not support a bill that “protects the rights of the legal citizen.”
HB2492 also includes provisions related to currently registered voters whose citizenship has not been confirmed. One provision directs the Arizona Secretary of State and each of the 15 county recorders to compile a list of such voters for the Arizona Attorney General on or before October 31, 2022.
The attorney general must then submit a report on or before March 31, 2023 detailing the citizenship status of individuals for whom satisfactory evidence of citizenship has still not been secured. In addition, the attorney general is required to prosecute those registered voters who are found to not be U.S. citizens pursuant to statute.
Hoffman’s bill contains a severability clause so if any provision of HB2492 is invalidated by a court then the rest of the legislation remains in effect. If signed by Ducey, the legislation will take effect 90 days after the end of the legislative session, meaning it should be in place prior to the August primaries.