With preparations for the general election already well under way, a U.S. Supreme Court ruling has Arizona election officials once again gearing up to require voters to present identification when casting ballots on Nov. 7.
The Supreme Court on Oct. 20 overturned a federal appellate court’s Oct. 5 ruling that put a hold on the voter ID requirement set in a 2004 law approved by voters.
“At least it wasn’t the day before the election,” said Patti Madrill, Yuma County election officer.
The Supreme Court ruling means that elections personnel will once again use ID requirements first used statewide in the Sept. 12 primary election. Some parts of the state also followed the requirement earlier this year for local elections.
“Everything will be just fine like it was last time,” said Gene Zawacky, special assistant to the Apache County elections director.
Meanwhile, while supporters of the ID requirement hailed the ruling as a step to deter voter fraud, opponents said it presents their side with a need to document the extent of voter disenfranchisement for consideration during yet-to-come court proceedings of their challenge.
The Supreme Court said it wasn’t deciding the legality of Arizona’s law, and federal courts still will have to resolve a legal challenge stemming from a May lawsuit.
The law approved by voters in 2004 generally requires that voters present either government-issued photo ID or two types of specified non-photo ID with name and address to cast a regular ballot at a polling place on Election Day.
Voters without the required ID can fill out a provisional ballot but under some circumstances would have to subsequently go to an election office to produce ID for that provisional ballot be counted.
Election officials: Making adjustments
Interviews with a sampling of county election officials around the state on Oct.23 found that some will have to make adjustments because they’d already started refresher training for poll workers before the ruling. However, others had yet to start that training and now can incorporate the ruling’s result in classes.
Ms. Madrill said Yuma County had just completed its general-election training classes last week when the ruling came down.
“We told our poll workers as of last week it was off. (However) we made them aware it could change before the election,” she said.
Mohave County Elections Director Allen Tempert said he’s starting training courses for poll workers and had materials prepared for either way the Supreme Court could have ruled. “It should work out just fine,” he said.
Pima County Election Director Brad Nelson said his county has already used the ID requirement twice, once in the primary and once in a May special election. Combined with news coverage, word of the requirement probably has reached most voters, he said.
“We think we’ve done a pretty good outreach,” Mr. Nelson said.
Karen Osborne, Maricopa County elections director, said officials have tried to stamp out bugs found during the primary election.
“Some places asked for too many (pieces of ID) and we had some ask for too few,” she said. ”Hopefully we’re right in the middle now.’’
At least several counties, including Maricopa and Pima, were making extra mailings to voters, partly to remind them of the ID requirement and provide them with documents that can be used at polling places. Copyright 2006 Associated Press.
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