Richer v. Fontes (Amicus)

Arizona requires voter registration applicants to submit documentary proof of citizenship (DPOC) to register as “full ballot” voters who can vote in federal, state, and local elections (as opposed to a different category of “federal only” voters who can only vote in federal elections). This case stems from the discovery, in September 2024, of a technical compatibility error between Arizona’s voter registration system and the Arizona Department of Transportation (DOT) that had allowed nearly 100,000 Arizona voters who received their driver’s licenses before 1996 to be marked as “full ballot” voters—not just “federal only”—despite it being unclear whether they provided DPOC. These voters have been registered as “full ballot” voters for decades without being informed of any potential deficiencies in their voter registrations.

Because it is practically impossible to resolve the voter registration statuses of these approximately 100,000 voters in time for the November 2024 election, Secretary of State Fontes issued guidance that these voters should still be allowed to vote full ballots. Maricopa County Recorder Richer brought this lawsuit, Richer v. Fontes, on September 17, 2024 to obtain clarity from the Arizona Supreme Court about how these approximately 100,000 voters should be treated for the November 2024 election, arguing that Secretary Fontes’ guidance conflicts with state law and that these voters should be treated as “federal only” voters unless they present DPOC.

On behalf of the San Carlos Apache Tribe, Living United for Change in Arizona, League of United Latin American Citizens of Arizona, Mi Familia Vota, ACLU of Arizona, and Campaign Legal Center (collectively, amici), an amicus brief was filed on September 18, 2024 before the Arizona Supreme Court by Campaign Legal Center, the ACLU, the ACLU of Arizona, the San Carlos Apache Tribe Department of Justice, and Barton Mendez Soto PLLC and Selendy Gay PLLC.

Our amicus brief argues in favor of Secretary Fontes’ approach to addressing the issue with the voter registrations of these nearly 100,000 Arizona voters—that these voters should not be penalized for the State of Arizona’s technical error and potentially disenfranchised from voting in all Arizona elections so close to the November 2024 election. Stripping these voters of their “full ballot” status would violate their procedural due process rights, equal protection rights, and their fundamental right to vote under the federal and Arizona Constitutions.