RNC and Arizona GOP Challenge Court Decision Allowing Non-Citizens to Vote in Arizona

The Republican National Committee (RNC), in conjunction with the Arizona Republican Party, has announced an appeal against a portion of a federal court decision related to Arizona’s election laws.

The appeal, filed on May 8, challenges the court’s ruling that prevents the state from requiring documentary proof of citizenship for presidential elections or mail-in voting.

The legal action intends to reinforce measures against the participation of non-citizens in Arizona’s elections, a move that the committees believe will uphold the integrity of the electoral process.

In February, Judge Susan Bolton of the U.S. District Court for the District of Arizona ruled in favor of maintaining two critical laws, HB 2492 and HB 2243, passed in 2022, which the RNC celebrated as a “landmark legal development for election integrity,” Epoch Times reported.

However, Bolton’s decision also prevents Arizona from enforcing documentary proof of citizenship for voting in presidential elections or by mail, a point of contention for the RNC and the Arizona GOP.

“The U.S. District Court for the District of Arizona struck down an Arizona requirement that individuals seeking to register to vote must list their birthplace as a prerequisite to registering to vote,” according to the press release.

“The court ruled that the birthplace requirement of House Bill 2492 violated a federal law that prevents election officials from rejecting voting materials for errors or omissions that are not material to determining a registrant’s qualifications to vote. The court previously ruled that Arizona may not require documentary proof of citizenship to vote in a federal election.”

In February, the court also struck down the section of HB 2243 permitting county recorders to cancel a voter’s registration if the individual is not a U.S. citizen. Furthermore, the court ruled that the state’s mandate for voters to provide documentary proof of residence to participate in federal elections allegedly violates federal law.

Before the trial in February, a federal judge appointed by Clinton blocked HB 2243 in September 2022 from being enforced in the 2022 General Election.

H.B. 2243 is meant to clean the voter rolls and remove registrants who are registered in another state and no longer live in Arizona. The new law would add a statement on voter registration forms, specifying that if a registrant permanently moves to another state after registering in this state, their registration will be canceled.

It would also direct the county recorder to cancel a voter registration when they confirm that the registered person is dead, that the person is not an Arizona resident or resident of that County, or that they are not a citizen of the United States.

The Gateway Pundit previously discovered during our investigation into the Electronic Registration Information Center (ERIC) that the largest U.S. Counties removed only ZERO to TWO ineligible voters from their voter rolls in the last four years.

ERIC, initially funded by the Soros Open Society Foundation, is essentially a left-wing voter registration drive disguised as a voter roll clean-up system and is used in Arizona and 30 other states.

State Rep. Jake Hoffman, the bill’s main sponsor, told The Gateway Pundit, “Democrats have stooped to a new level of shamefulness and depravity with their latest round of lies about Arizona’s common sense laws to ensure that our elections are accessible, secure, and trustworthy.”

In a joint release, the Republican committees expressed their determination to contest this aspect of the ruling.

“The ruling requires election officials to enforce a critical Arizona law and ensure that non-citizens are not allowed to remain on voter rolls. The RNC and AZGOP will do everything we can to safeguard the fundamental principle that American elections are decided by American citizens,” RNC Chairman Michael Whatley said.

“Every voter in Arizona has a bedrock right to ensure their votes and their voices are not diluted by ineligible voters casting ballots and impacting our elections and our representation. We will pursue every legal action to guarantee a fair and transparent election and to enforce the rule of law,” Arizona GOP Chairwoman Gina Swoboda said.

Arizona State Senate President Warren Petersen and House Speaker Ben Toma, both Republicans, have joined the legal challenge, reinforcing the GOP’s stance on this issue.

According to the press release:

In 2022, Arizona passed HB 2243, which, among other provisions, requires counties to conduct monthly citizenship verification checks of registered voters who have not submitted documentary proof of citizenship.

In a lawsuit decided in February 2024, the RNC successfully defended most of the law’s list maintenance provisions which are meant to ensure non-citizens are identified and removed from voter rolls.

The Arizona Republican Party moved to intervene in the case and defend Arizona’s right to require proof of citizenship to vote.

However, the court’s decision enjoins Arizona from requiring documentary proof of citizenship to vote in presidential elections or vote by mail. Our appeal will fight this decision. Not requiring proof of citizenship in order to vote in presidential elections or vote by mail undermines a fundamental principle of our elections: that they should be decided by American citizens.

Following our win on the list maintenance provisions, we sent letters and public records requests to each county in Arizona requesting information as to how counties are implementing the law’s list maintenance requirements. 

Only six counties have so far responded. Of these counties, none are in full compliance with HB 2243’s list maintenance provisions. Apparently, counties do not have access to some of the databases the statute requires them to check.

It is inexcusable that the Secretary of State and the counties have not secured access to these databases, despite the law being in effect for nearly two years and never enjoined by a court.

If counties do not show evidence of compliance with the law, the RNC and AZGOP will pursue every legal avenue to uphold election integrity in Arizona.

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