Arizona appeals court says per-signature ballot initiative ban is illegal

The ruling is a major defeat for Attorney General Mark Brnovich, who charged the state’s largest signature-gathering firm in 2020 with 50 misdemeanor criminal counts for bonus programs it used while collecting signatures for Proposition 208. Petition Partners faced up to $5 million in fines.

Intel: Putin may cite Ukraine war to meddle in US politics

Given Vladimir Putin’s antipathy toward the West and his repeated denunciations of Ukraine, officials believe he may see the U.S. backing of Ukraine’s resistance as a direct affront to him, giving him further incentive to target another U.S. election.

GOP tensions rise as Arizona Senate votes down more election bills

Among the bills killed were measures that would have created new criminal charges for a variety of missteps by election workers and contractors; created new rights for election observers, including the right to question election officials during counting; set new requirements for post-election audits and recordkeeping; required a unique serial number on each ballot.