The lawsuit states that in-person voting on Election Day is the only system detailed in the constitution—so at a minimum, the state should revert back to the system it used prior to the introduction of no-excuse early ballots in 1991, according to the Arizona Daily Star. In the pre-1991 system, a reason was required to obtain an early ballot, such as not being in the area to vote on Election Day or having a physical disability.
The lawsuit repeats claims made by former President Donald Trump and other Republicans that early voting and mail-in voting are vulnerable to extensive voter fraud, which has become Trump’s unsubstantiated reason for why he lost the 2020 election.
“Our early voting system is secure and popular,” Arizona Secretary of State Katie Hobbs tweeted in response to the suit. “This lawsuit filed by the Republican Party of Arizona has a single aim—to make it more difficult to vote. I look forward to once again defending the voters of Arizona and defeating this ridiculous attempt to undermine our elections.”
Alexander Kolodin, the attorney who filed the suit, said reverting to the pre-1991 system where a provable reason is required to obtain an early ballot would provide more security over the election system than allowing early ballots to be requested for no reason, the Daily Star reported.
“Many states with similar provisions have amended their constitutions to allow for mail-in voting,” Kolodin said in a statement sent to Newsweek. “Yet in 1991, Arizona’s politicians gave us an insecure system of no-excuse mail-in voting without taking this necessary step. Now Secretary Hobbs has taken this unconstitutional act and run with it, authorizing unmonitored drop-boxes without any legal authority and failing to even provide lawful procedures for verifying signatures on early ballots. Enough is enough.”
Arizona lawmakers have discussed the relatively unpopular option of repealing early voting statutes entirely and are debating a plan to increase the security measures required to obtain an early ballot, per the Daily Star.
Kolodin’s lawsuit also states that even if early voting is legal in the state, the “drop boxes” for ballots to be submitted are not legal because current state law only allows ballots to be submitted by mail or in person at a registered polling location, according to the Daily Star.
He alleges that the drop boxes should not be allowed per the state constitution. And even if they are legal, there is no legislation that has been passed to allow them—but yet, they have been permitted by Hobbs, which Kolodin said “exceeds her legal authority,” the Daily Star reported.
The lawsuit also states that while the state constitution says voting should be conducted in private so a voter is not directly influenced while filling out a ballot, mail-in voting has no such requirements and therefore a ballot could be filled out while a “bad actor” attempts to “coerce” someone to vote a specific way.
Earlier this month, Arizona Republican Party Chair Kelli Ward was one of several people subpoenaed by the House January 6 Committee for allegedly asking state election officials to “stop the counting” and for speaking with Trump and others about the certification of election results in Arizona, Newsweek previously reported.
Update 3/1/22 11:00 a.m. ET: This story has been updated with a statement from the law firm representing the Arizona Republican Party.
Update 2/28/22 3:40 p.m. ET: This story has been updated with additional information and context.
