Nearly 100K Arizonans could be impacted by error in voter registration system

PHOENIX - Nearly 100,000 people in Arizona may not be eligible to vote in the 2024 general election after an error was discovered, officials say.

The Maricopa County Recorder's Office says they discovered that 97,000 voters were able to register to vote without providing documented proof of citizenship.

If a driver received a license prior to 1996, there is no proof of citizenship in the motor vehicle division's records. 

Since 2004, Arizona requires a voter to provide documented proof of citizenship. So, if a driver with an older license registers to vote, the MVD thinks they have proof of citizenship in the system and allows them to vote a full ballot. The error has allowed them to slip through the cracks for years.

"This isn’t a comfortable position to be in, by any stretch," said Arizona Secretary of State Adrian Fontes.

Richer says the majority of the affected voters are most likely U.S. citizens: they just don't have documented proof. The largest group of them are Republicans, followed by independents and Democrats. Most of the people affected are between the ages of 45 and 60, and over 60% of them are in Maricopa County.

The recorder's office wants these people not to be allowed to vote on a full ballot – which includes federal, state and local elections – but instead, a federal-only ballot which includes only federal elections, the president, U.S. senator and U.S. House of Representatives.

"The Secretary argues that it is too close to the election to implement such a change and that it would be unduly burdensome on voters and deprive them of their voting rights. That is why we are going to the courts. To get a clear answer," Richer wrote on X.

"Every single one of these voters has met the minimum criteria in swearing an affirmation, under penalty of perjury that they would have to do, to vote in every election across the United States of America. Only Arizona has this, what I think is an unreasonable extra burden on its voter," Fontes said. "This happened because we have policies that are being driven by conspiracy theories. And we have for a long time."

Fontes also noted that the votes this group cast in past elections are cast, and there's no going back, as there's a finality to elections.

Gov. Katie Hobbs says she's aware of the issue and has directed the MVD to work with the Secretary of State to fix the problem. Hobbs is also implementing an independent audit out of an abundance of caution.

Richer says he's suing the Secretary of State's office "regarding how to handle certain voters who need to provide documented proof of citizenship."