DSCC Chair Gary Peters, DCCC Chair Suzan DelBene, DNC Chair Jaime Harrison, and Arizona Democratic Party Chair Raquel Terán released the following statement on the Arizona Court of Appeals unanimously sided with the DSCC, DCCC, DNC, and Arizona Democratic Party, affirming a lower court’s decision to dismiss a GOP lawsuit challenging the state’s no-excuse mail-in voting law.
“This ruling is a win for all Arizonans. The state has a long history of running a popular and secure vote-by-mail system, and we were proud to help defend against Republicans’ continued attempts to undermine it.
“As Republicans try to rig the rulebook and disregard the will of voters, Democrats stand united, ready to take Republicans to court to protect every eligible voter’s rights and ensure their vote is counted.”
Additional background:
Arizonans have been voting using absentee or early ballots for nearly 100 years, and it has become the dominant means by which Arizonans vote by a wide margin.
Arizona’s Constitution explicitly guarantees the right to vote, with the only procedural limits being that votes must be cast “by ballot” or any “other method” authorized by the Legislature.
The Republicans’ proposal would itself violate the Arizona Constitution. And it would effectively invalidate all of the legislature’s laws governing any type of voting other than in-person election day voting – laws that the Legislature has been enacting in one form or another since 1925.
The impact of this Republican proposal would also create enormous challenges for Arizona’s election administration and for Arizonans – including military, tribal and younger voters in school – who live far away from a polling location.
