Arizona Republicans Propose New Laws To Limit Mail Voting – What Are They Trying To Achieve?
Republican lawmakers in Arizona have announced at least 22 restrictive laws. Over half of the bills deal with mail voting, with one particularly contentious bill attempting to exclude infrequent voters from the PEVL (Permanent Early Voting List).
“We see this as a full-fledged attack on voting rights and political processes in Arizona,” said Emily Kirkland, executive director of the advocacy group Progress Arizona, adding that the same state lawmakers pushing voting restrictions had spread Trump’s false claim of a rigged election.
Although Republicans govern all three state government branches, it’s uncertain if these bills will be approved by Gov. Doug Ducey, who has previously defended Arizona’s mail voting system.
The laws have been condemned as voter intimidation by Democrats and leading civil and voting rights activists. One of the bills, which has since died in committee would have enabled lawmakers to disregard election results and override presidential elector certification. Republican state Representative John Kavanagh told CNN last week that his party was worried about the “quality” of the voters.
His words caused controversy immediately. “These are the same excuses that we heard during the Jim Crow period,” said Representative Colin Allred, D-Texas, on MSNBC.
The proposed changes come after President Joe Biden narrowly won Arizona by 10,000 votes, sparking a wave of attacks from Trump, his supporters, and local Republicans, who have rushed to challenge the election process this year.
Last Updated: July 5, 2021 by CornerstoneCMG
Arizona Republicans Propose New Laws To Limit Mail Voting – What Are They Trying To Achieve?
Republican lawmakers in Arizona have announced at least 22 restrictive laws. Over half of the bills deal with mail voting, with one particularly contentious bill attempting to exclude infrequent voters from the PEVL (Permanent Early Voting List).
“We see this as a full-fledged attack on voting rights and political processes in Arizona,” said Emily Kirkland, executive director of the advocacy group Progress Arizona, adding that the same state lawmakers pushing voting restrictions had spread Trump’s false claim of a rigged election.
Although Republicans govern all three state government branches, it’s uncertain if these bills will be approved by Gov. Doug Ducey, who has previously defended Arizona’s mail voting system.
The laws have been condemned as voter intimidation by Democrats and leading civil and voting rights activists. One of the bills, which has since died in committee would have enabled lawmakers to disregard election results and override presidential elector certification. Republican state Representative John Kavanagh told CNN last week that his party was worried about the “quality” of the voters.
His words caused controversy immediately. “These are the same excuses that we heard during the Jim Crow period,” said Representative Colin Allred, D-Texas, on MSNBC.
The proposed changes come after President Joe Biden narrowly won Arizona by 10,000 votes, sparking a wave of attacks from Trump, his supporters, and local Republicans, who have rushed to challenge the election process this year.
Report by:
Journalist/Photographer _ Florence Akano
Journalist/Photographer _ Olivier Noudjalbaye Dedingar
Category: News