Arizona officials have uncovered a significant error in the state's voter registration system, affecting tens of thousands of individuals.

According to Just the News, Arizona authorities have admitted to finding approximately 97,000 voters incorrectly registered as having provided proof of U.S. citizenship despite not actually doing so.

This revelation comes amid an ongoing lawsuit against the state for failing to remove non-citizens from its voter rolls.

The error, which has persisted for about two decades across four administrations, was discovered when a Maricopa County worker identified a registered voter with full voting privileges who had not provided proof of U.S. citizenship. The individual in question was found to be a green card holder who had never cast a ballot.

State Officials Explain Voter Registration System Glitch

Arizona Secretary of State Adrian Fontes explained that the error originated in the process of transferring driver's license information to the state's voter registration system. The issue affected voters who had obtained Arizona driver's licenses before October 1996 and were issued duplicate replacements before registering to vote after 2004.

Governor Katie Hobbs' office clarified that the state's Access Voter Information Database (AVID) was programmed to query the duplicate issuance date of driver's licenses and would not alert counties if the license was originally issued before October 1, 1996.

Maricopa County Recorder Stephen Richer announced that his office would sue the secretary of state's office regarding how to handle certain voters who need to provide documented proof of citizenship for the upcoming November 5 election.

Legal Implications And Ongoing Lawsuit

The discovery of this error coincides with a lawsuit filed by America First Legal (AFL) against all 15 of Arizona's counties. The lawsuit alleges that the counties failed to remove non-citizens from their voter rolls.

James Rogers, AFL Senior Counsel, stated:

This situation emphasizes the importance of our lawsuit against Arizona's 15 county recorders, which we filed on behalf of our clients EZAZ.org and Yvonne Cahill. Arizona law requires that voters must provide documentary proof of citizenship to vote in state and local elections.

Rogers further emphasized that this revelation disproves claims that current voter list maintenance efforts are sufficient and that there is no evidence of foreign citizens registering to vote in Arizona.

Bifurcated Election System And Citizenship Verification

Arizona's unique bifurcated election system allows residents who provide proof of U.S. citizenship to vote in all elections, while those who don't may only vote in federal elections.

This system resulted from a 2013 U.S. Supreme Court ruling that required Arizona to accept U.S. voter registration forms due to federal requirements under the 1993 National Voter Registration Act.

Former Arizona Assistant Attorney General Jennifer Wright explained that the state's Elections Procedures Manual requires non-citizens to be identified by citizenship status on their driver's licenses. Wright suggested submitting the list of affected voters to the U.S. Department of Homeland Security to confirm their citizenship status.

Impact On Upcoming Elections And Voter Confidence

The discovery of this error so close to the upcoming elections raises concerns about voter confidence and the integrity of Arizona's electoral process. With military and overseas voter ballots scheduled to be sent out soon, officials are scrambling to address the issue.

Rep. Eli Crane, R-Ariz., commented on the situation, stating that these were issues they anticipated dealing with and emphasizing the need to make the election "too big to rig."

According to information from the Arizona secretary of state's office cited in the AFL lawsuit, as of July 1, 42,301 voters without proof of citizenship were on Arizona's voter rolls, an increase from 35,273 as of April 1.

In conclusion, Arizona officials have acknowledged a significant error in their voter registration system, affecting nearly 100,000 non-citizen voters erroneously listed on the rolls. This discovery has led to legal challenges and raised concerns about the integrity of the state's electoral process.

The issue spans two decades and multiple administrations, highlighting the need for improved voter list maintenance and citizenship verification procedures. As the state grapples with this revelation, officials are working to address the problem and clarify how to handle affected voters in upcoming elections.