(Dmytro “Henry” Aleksandrov, Headline USA) On Aug. 22, 2024, after the Republican National Committee and Arizona Republicans made its request, the U.S. Supreme Court revived part of an Arizona voter law requiring documented proof of U.S. citizenship to register to vote.
The Washington Free Beacon reported that, in a 5-4 ruling, the justices agreed to reinstate a provision of the law after a federal judge blocked it in response to legal challenges by the anti-American Biden–Harris administration and far-left activists.
The news came before the 2024 election, in which Harris will face Donald Trump.
The state‘s Republican-controlled legislature adopted new voter registration restrictions in 2022. Applicants who submit a federal registration form must provide evidence of American citizenship to vote in presidential elections or vote by mail in any federal election.
Applications from voter registrants who use a separate, state-created form without providing proof of U.S. citizenship would face a minor felony charge under the law.
The news source reported that the court’s ruling revived the restriction on the state voter registration form but kept a judicial decision blocking the provision that sought to tighten limits on the federal form.
When Republican then-governor Doug Ducey signed the legislation in March 2022, he said the measure balanced voting accessibility with election security.
“Election integrity means counting every lawful vote and prohibiting any attempt to illegally cast a vote,” he said.
As expected, the Biden administration sued to block the Arizona law in July 2022, claiming a 1993 federal law supersedes it called the National Voter Registration Act. The law said that states must register voters for federal elections after they submit the federal registration form. The form requires a declaration of U.S. citizenship under penalty of perjury but not documentary proof.
Before the recent SCOTUS ruling, non-citizens were prohibited from voting until September of 2024, which didn’t make sense because they could still vote in the general election.
Arizona, a swing state, is expected to be among the most competitive states in the November election.
According to state data, Arizona had more than 42,000 “federal only” registered voters as of July 1, 2024.
