A new ruling from an Arizona judge will require the secretary of state to immediately release a list of 218,000 individuals who registered to vote without providing proof of citizenship, which is required by law.
Today’s ruling comes one month after Arizona secretary of state Adrian Fontes, a Democrat elected in 2022, revealed that a computer glitch had allowed the affected individuals to register to vote without providing proof of citizenship.
The Strong Communities Foundation of Arizona, also known as EZAZ.org, sued the state under Arizona’s Public Records Law, arguing that the statute requires Fontes to turn over the list to members of the public who request it. According to a press release from America First Legal, which represented EZAZ.org in the case, the secretary of state “regularly produces voter lists in response to such requests,” but in this case, Fontes refused to release the records.
Fontes had argued that his office didn’t have a full, verifiable list of voters affected by the glitch and said the task would be further complicated because the driver’s license database, which is where the glitch originated, is managed by the state department of transportation’s motor-vehicle division.
He testified that his office has a list of 98,000 of the 218,000 individuals affected by the glitch.
“It would be virtually impossible for us to be able to do what the plaintiffs are asking us to do. A, because we don’t have control; B, we don’t have a list; C, we don’t have the resources; and D, I’m scared to death for my voters,” Fontes said, adding that when his office receives completed records from the motor-vehicle division, it would still need to then share that information with election officials across 15 counties to verify whether the voters have provided the proof of citizenship required by state law.
Fontes further argued that county election officials and the secretary of state don’t have the resources to carry out those tasks heading into Election Day.
Nonetheless, Maricopa County Superior Court judge Scott Blaney ruled that Fontes’s office must release the list of names by Monday — one day before Election Day. The ruling said Fontes “provided inconsistent testimony” regarding whether his office possesses a full or partial list of the affected voters. “His testimony suggested that he lacked detailed familiarity with the AZSOS’s efforts with regard to the issue and with regard to the records in the possession of the AZSOS related to the 218,000 individuals,” the judge ruled.
The court is requiring Fontes to share the list of 98,000 individuals and any other personally identifying information that he has about the 218,000 individuals.
“As the Court admonished the parties prior to and during the hearing, the issue for the Court to decide is whether the records that Plaintiff requested must be released pursuant to Arizona’s public records law,” the order reads. “Despite the political undertones, this is simply a public records case.”
Fontes also argued against releasing the names out of concern that it could lead to threats and harassment from members of the public accusing them of voting illegally. “I don’t want blood on my hands,” the secretary of state said, with his attorney arguing that the safety concerns justified denying the records request under exceptions to Arizona’s Public Records Law.
But the judge dismissed this argument. “The only evidence they presented was about generalized threats of elected-related political violence, most against elected officials. They failed to identify any specific threats of violence or harassment.”
AFL argued the lawsuit is “critically important to the integrity of the upcoming presidential election as the official results for the presidential race in Arizona 2020 list the margin of victory as being only 10,457 votes.”
EZAZ.org plans to immediately share the list upon its receipt with county officials so they can verify the citizenship of voters who have not already provided proof of citizenship.
“A majority of Arizonans no longer trust the election system of our state,” said James Rogers, senior counsel at America First Legal. “One of the reasons is the lack of transparency from our state’s elected officials. When Secretary Fontes discovered the glitch that allowed 218,000 individuals to register without providing proof of citizenship, he should have immediately shared the list of affected individuals with Arizona’s county recorders, who are in charge of verifying the citizenship of voters.”
“Instead, he has jealously guarded the list, refusing to share it with anyone,” he said. “This suit was about restoring transparency and ensuring that county recorders can do their jobs by verifying the citizenship of voters. It is unfortunate that Secretary Fontes so aggressively opposed our common-sense efforts to help restore trust in our state’s election system. This was a case we never should have needed to file.”