Arizona Voter Data Error Affected 218,000 Voters
The administrative error in Arizona’s elections systems that briefly risked the voting eligibility of 97,000 residents actually affected twice that number of voters.
According to Arizona Secretary of State Adrian Fontes (D), 120,000 additional voters were affected by the data coding oversight that erroneously marked them as having provided documentary proof of citizenship when registering to vote, when it’s actually unclear if they did. In total, the data coding oversight impacted approximately 218,000 voters, according to a release from Fontes’ office.
Nearly 20 voting and election lawsuits have been filed in Arizona so far this cycle, almost all of which seek to restrict voting in the Grand Canyon State.
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When the error was discovered, it jeopardized the eligibility of affected individuals to vote in state and local elections in the November election. But the Arizona Supreme Court ruled that, despite the error, the affected voters may still vote in the election. “This is particularly true under the present facts, where a state administrative failure permitted the (voters) to be registered without confirming that they provided DPOC (documentary proof of citizenship) when they received their driver’s licenses and where there is so little time remaining before the beginning of the 2024 General Election,” the court’s order said.
Previous update, Sept. 21:
Arizona’s highest court ruled that the 97,000 registered voters whose status was in jeopardy due to an administrative error in the state’s elections systems will be allowed to vote in state, local and federal elections.
In its unanimous decision Friday, the Arizona Supreme Court concluded that Maricopa County Recorder Stephen Richer (R), who flagged the data error in the state’s Motor Vehicle Department database, has not established that county recorders have legal authority to block the affected voters from being able to vote in state elections this fall.
“This is particularly true under the present facts, where a state administrative failure permitted the (voters) to be registered without confirming that they provided DPOC (documentary proof of citizenship) when they received their driver’s licenses and where there is so little time remaining before the beginning of the 2024 General Election,” the order said.
Under Arizona’s documentary proof of citizenship requirement, passed in 2004, residents are required to provide documentary proof of citizenship to register to vote in federal, state and local elections. The law also states that any driver’s license issued after 1996 is a valid documentary proof of citizenship.
But a “data coding error” resulted in 97,000 registered voters who obtained their driver’s license before 1996 being incorrectly marked as having documentary proof of citizenship, when it’s not completely clear if every voter provided proof.
Richer asked the high court to block those affected voters from voting in state and local elections in November. But the court said it’s “unwilling on these facts to disenfranchise voters en masse from participating in state contests. Doing so is not authorized by state law and would violate principles of due process.”
Read more about the case here.
Previous update, Sept. 17
Arizona officials announced Tuesday that a “data coding oversight” in the state’s elections systems is jeopardizing the eligibility of 97,000 registered voters, less than two months until the general election.
At the heart of the issue is Arizona’s documentary proof of citizenship requirement, which is among the most restrictive voter laws in the country. Since 2004, Arizona residents have been required to provide documentary proof of citizenship to register to vote in federal, state and local elections. But those residents who didn’t provide documentary proof of citizenship can only register as a “federal-only voter” and vote in federal and presidential races. The 2004 law also states that any driver’s license issued after 1996 is a valid documentary proof of citizenship.
But a data error in the state’s Motor Vehicle Department (MVD) database and statewide voter registration database incorrectly marked 97,000 registered voters, who obtained their license before 1996, as having provided documentary proof of citizenship before it was required to register to vote. Arizona Gov. Katie Hobbs (D) explained in a press release that, when these specific voters had a duplicate license issued as a replacement for their original, if the duplicate was issued after 1996, then the database automatically filed them as voters registered with documentary proof of citizenship, when in reality it’s unclear if those voters actually did.
“As soon as I became aware of the problem, I directed MVD to work with the SOS to aggressively develop and implement a solution and, out of an abundance of caution, will be implementing an independent audit to ensure that MVD systems are functioning as necessary to support voter registration,” Hobbs said in a statement.
The issue was flagged by Maricopa County Recorder Stephen Richer (R), who filed a lawsuit asking the Arizona Supreme Court to block those affected voters from voting in state and local elections in November. Under the National Voting Rights Act (NVRA), the affected voters are still eligible to vote in the federal and presidential election come November. “All of these people have attested under penalty of law that they are U.S. citizens. And, in all likelihood, they [are] almost all U.S. Citizens,” Richer said on X. “But they have NOT provided documented proof of citizenship.”
Arizona Secretary of State Adrian Fontes (D) said in a statement the majority of affected voters are registered as Republicans. In a press conference on Tuesday, Fontes added that election officials will be contacting those affected by the error as soon as possible to address their voter registration status.
The error comes amid a fierce legal battle over Arizona’s strict documentary proof of citizenship law. The 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals heard oral argument earlier this month in a lawsuit challenging two of Arizona’s voter suppression laws, including the documentary proof of citizenship requirement for voters. Oral argument came just weeks after the U.S. Supreme Court partially rejected a request from the Republican National Committee (RNC) to not allow any registered voters to vote in any election in November if they haven’t provided documentary proof of citizenship. The nation’s highest court ruled those who registered to vote using federal registration forms — which don’t require documentary proof of citizenship — will be able to vote in the presidential election and by mail. But voters who registered using the state’s registration form and didn’t provide documentary proof of citizenship will not be registered.
The “data coding error” in Arizona’s state elections system also comes at a time of heightened right-wing attacks and disinformation campaigns related to noncitizens voting in federal elections. Multiple studies and data has shown that instances of noncitizen voting are extraordinarily rare.
Read the lawsuit here.
Learn more about the case here.
This post was updated at 5:45 p.m. to reflect that the lawsuit was filed.