In ‘uncertain times,’ Arizona lawmakers introduce bill to improve voting access, cybersecurity

Arizona Secretary of State Adrian Fontes on Wednesday announced new legislation that would seek to improve voting access and provide funding to improve the cybersecurity of state and county election systems.

During a press conference, Fontes called the legislation, called the Voters First Act, a “research-based, common-sense proposal to modernize, standardize and prioritize the voting process across all 15 counties in Arizona.”

The act, which was introduced by Democratic party leaders in both houses Wednesday, includes statewide restoration of Arizona’s permanent early vote list, which allows voters to receive ballots by mail for early voting, and applies the state’s 75-foot “voter protection zone” to ballot drop boxes and voting locations. It would extend the early voting period, allow the state to accept private grant funding to educate the public about the basic facts of statewide elections and allow ballots to be collected and processed continually on election day, for faster results.

“The choice before us is not whether to change, but whether to rise to the moment, to ensure the resilience of our democracy during uncertain times,” Fontes said.

Priya Sundareshan, the Arizona Senate’s minority leader, who introduced the bill in the Senate, told reporters the bill is bipartisan and “builds on what’s already working in Arizona,” noting that it is designed to codify statewide procedures already used with success in some counties.

“Importantly, we kept out the extremist, voter suppressive ideas and the election denial ideas that continually pop up before us,” Sundareshan said. “These are common-sense proposals, they’re popular proposals that modernize and standardize our elections while keeping the focus where it belongs and prioritizing the voters.”

The act would provide $1 million from state general funds to the secretary of state’s office, at least half of which would be used to purchase equipment for voting centers.

Funds would also be provided for mandatory participation in a “multistate electronic voter registration information center.” Though the bill does not name a particular organization, several attending Wednesday’s press event said this would be the Electronic Registration Information Center, also known as ERIC, an information-sharing group that state Rep. Oscar De Los Santos during the event called “the most effective tool we have to maintain accurate voter rolls.” (In some politically conservative states, such as Texas, it has become favorable instead to forge state-to-state data-sharing agreements.)

The remainder of that funding would be used to improve the state’s ballot tracking system and provide members of the public with text notifications when their ballots have been counted.

An additional $1 million from the state general fund would pay for improvements to state and county technology and cybersecurity programs, what Fontes called “a more permanent set of funding so that we can continue to stay secure and stay ahead of the bad guys, instead of having to act on an emergency basis year in and year out.”

Despite the bill’s advocates repeatedly framing the legislation as bipartisan and “common sense,” Sundareshan admitted that getting full participation from Senate Republicans could be “tough.” In Arizona, baseless conspiracies abound, regarding ERIC and elections generally, a fact highlighted during the event by Alex Gulatta, Arizona state director for All Voting is Local, a nonpartisan group that advocates for “fair and inclusive” elections.

“Over the past several legislative sessions, election deniers in our legislature have intensified efforts to limit common-sense voter protections and options, things like vote-by-mail, things like the use of vote centers,” Gulatta said. “Isn’t it wild that we have legislatures in the halls here demanding faster results and at the same time we make it illegal for our election officials to collect and process the hundreds and thousands of ballots that are dropped off on Election Day.”

De Los Santos, the state House minority leader, who introduced the legislation’s companion bill, said it would reduce “long lines and confusion” and otherwise advance “shared popular expectations” that cross party boundaries.

“Despite our diversity, there are a few basic things most Arizonans can agree on,” he said. “First, people who are legally qualified to vote should be able to cast a ballot without unnecessary obstacles. Second, people who are not legally qualified to vote should be prevented from doing so. And third, voters should be protected from intimidation or threats at polling places and ballot drop boxes.”

Fontes is meanwhile facing a lawsuit from the Department of Justice over its pursuit of unredacted voter registration lists, a request he’s told the press he’s “willing to go to jail” over. A federal judge last week ruled against the DOJ in a similar lawsuit against California. District judge David O. Carter said some of the federal agency’s arguments “lacked depth” and were “contrived,” before noting numerous federal privacy laws that preempted its request to obtain sensitive personal information of millions of registered voters.