Court voids Arizona proof of citizenship for voters

From the Arizona Daily Star - PHOENIX - A federal appeals court on Tuesday threw out a state mandate for people to provide proof of citizenship before they can register to vote. In a divided decision, two members of the three-judge 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals panel found the requirement, approved by Arizona voters in 2004, violates the federal National Voter Registration Act, which spells out what states can and cannot require to vote in federal elections. Judge Sandra Ikuta, writing the majority decision, concluded the requirement to produce one of a list of specified documents proving citizenship is not allowed. That conclusion drew derision from Secretary of State Ken Bennett who oversees elections. He said the proof is necessary to protect the integrity of elections. He compared the ruling to allowing people going through airports unchecked, as long as they sign a certificate vowing they are not terrorists and aren't carrying explosives. He plans to appeal. Sen. Russell Pearce, R-Mesa, who wrote the 2004 measure, said the ruling "flies in the face of common sense." "It should go without saying that states have the right to ensure that only citizens vote," he said. Nina Perales, an attorney with the Mexican American Legal Defense and Educational Fund, one of the groups that sued, said there are parallels between this case and the more recent challenge to the state's new immigration law. In both cases, she said, judges have struck down efforts by Arizona to usurp federal authority. "What the federal courts have done consistently now, recently, is told Arizona that these schemes that it's coming up with, whether it's voter registration schemes or whether they're immigrant regulation schemes, are outside the bounds, and that Arizona has to comply with the superseding federal law," she said. Read more

Court voids Arizona proof of citizenship for voters