Voter Suppression Blitz in Arizona: State Lawmakers Pushing 30+ Bills Attacking Voting Rights and Democratic Norms
January 29, 2021
Contact: Emily Kirkland, emily@progressarizona.org, 646 623 5271
Community Organizations Call for Immediate Action to Defend Democracy
As of Thursday night, Arizona state lawmakers have introduced at least 34 bills that undermine democratic ideals and institutions, including bills to eliminate or restrict voting by mail, gut the grassroots ballot initiative process, criminalize protest, and give the state legislature the power to override the voters’ choice in presidential elections.
These proposals come just weeks after an armed attack on the U.S. Capitol that attempted to overturn the results of the 2020 election. That attack was sparked by lies about the 2020 election, which multiple sitting Arizona federal and state lawmakers helped to spread.
A list of the current bills can be found here. Given that the deadline to introduce legislation has not yet passed, additional bills are likely to be added in the coming days.
Some of these bills are moving quickly through the legislative process: SB1069, which would purge 100,000+ voters from the permanent vote by mail list, passed through a Senate committee last week and could pass the full Senate next week. 68% of registered voters in Arizona are on the permanent vote by mail list.
At least 12 other bills have been scheduled for hearings or assigned to committees.
In response to the proposed bills, 22 Arizona-based community organizations and voting rights groups issued the following statement:
“This is an incredibly alarming and urgent situation. Just weeks after the insurrection at the U.S. Capitol, we are seeing our state legislature launch a full-scale attack on the foundations of our democracy. We are determined to stop these bills and to reaffirm our state’s commitment to democracy and free and fair elections. We ask all Arizonans to contact their legislators and demand that they protect democratic ideals and institutions.”