Arizona is facing an issue involving voters who lack the necessary proof of citizenship but have been allowed to vote using the “full ballot,” instead of the restricted “federal ballot” for presidential and congressional races. This situation, recently upheld by a Supreme Court decision, has affected about 97,000 voters due to what Maricopa County officials describe as an “administrative error.”
According to the Maricopa County Recorder’s Office, these voters have been participating in state and municipal elections alongside federal elections for years without having the proper documentation required by law. Since December 2004, Arizona has mandated that voters provide a recognized ID issued after October 1, 1996, to vote in all elections.
Those without this documentation should only receive a federal ballot, which limits their voting to presidential, Senate, and House races. However, some voters who received duplicate driver’s licenses—initially issued before 1996 but reissued afterward—were mistakenly allowed to vote on full ballots.
Stephen Richer, the Maricopa County Recorder, explained that this error occurred due to the system misreading duplicate licenses as proof of citizenship when they should not have qualified. The system would treat the reissued license date as evidence of citizenship when it should not have. This mix-up enabled voters without documented proof of citizenship to receive full ballots.
Richer stated that these voters should only be eligible to vote using the federal ballot, and the issue is now being brought to the courts for resolution. Arizona’s Secretary of State argues that making changes now, so close to an election, could disenfranchise voters.
According to Arizona Clean Elections, federal-only voters are those who haven’t provided proof of citizenship or residency, and they are only allowed to vote in federal races. Full ballot voters, on the other hand, have provided proper documentation or have been verified through the voter registration system or Motor Vehicle Division, allowing them to participate in state and local elections as well.
