The Arizona Senate Judiciary and Elections Committee gave the first approval yesterday, to Senate Bill 1011 which could change early voting procedures in the state.
The bill's sponsor, Senate President Warren Peterson, told members of the committee that early mail-in ballots dropped off in person would no longer be accepted on Election Day.
“For your early ballot there is a cut off of 7pm the Friday before the election, this allows all counties to have on site tabulating from the day that the election starts up until election day,” Petersen said.
Gabriela Cazares-Kelly, Pima County Recorder, said the bill would disproportionately impact voters in rural and tribal communities.
“Especially for household members who are returning on behalf of another in rural areas,” Cazares-Kelly said.
While Petersen’s bill includes provisions to add voting locations, Cazares-Kelly noted that rural and tribal areas often only have one voting center in, limiting the impact of the proposal.
She also raised concerns about safety, pointing out that Pima County was one of several jurisdictions that received bomb threats during the last election cycle.
“The political violence factor has increased and our office is focused on de-escalation,” she said.
Petersen’s proposal also replaces emergency voting on the weekend before Election Day with regular early voting.
Anyone turning in a mail-in ballot at a voting site would have to show ID and be checked against the voter rolls under the terms of the bill, which would eliminate the need for election officials to check signatures of those mail-in ballots turned in in-person.
Petersen and other Republicans have expressed frustration that it takes election officials too long to count ballots and say that checking ID at the polls for those who turn in mail ballots in-person and making the cut off for those the Friday before the election, would speed the process up.
Mailed-in ballots would still be accepted until 7 p.m. on election night.
The bill passed the committee on a party line vote and still requires approval from the full House and Senate before being sent to Governor Katie Hobbs for consideration.
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