What a difference four days makes.
On Monday, there appeared to be an insurmountable wide gulf between Republicans and Democrats on how to proceed with fixing the 2024 election calendar after the 2022 Republican led State Legislature adjusted the margins required to institute a mandatory voter recount.
However, both sides, in the span of almost 96 hours, were able to arrive at a bipartisan compromise to this electoral dilemma.
Earlier this afternoon, lopsided votes in the Arizona State House and State Senate with only four Republicans dissenting (including election denying Jake ‘Troll Farm-Fake Elector’ Hoffman and Anthony ‘January 6 Enabler-Lets take voters rights away’ Kern) passed a bipartisan fix to the 2024 election cycle that would:
- Move the Arizona Primary Elections to the end of July.
- Adjust the ballot cure period “with new processes to ensure as many eligible votes as possible can be counted.”
- Assure overseas military service members and their spouses can get their ballots on time.
- Ensure that any recounts will not hinder the certification of the 2024 Presidential Election results.
Commenting on the bipartisan compromise, Arizona Governor Katie Hobbs stated in an official press release:
“I am proud that a strong bipartisan deal passed to secure free and fair elections, protect voters’ rights and ensure overseas military members will have their voices heard at the ballot box. I appreciate the legislators who stood firm to protect voters and remove partisan politics from this bill. While this legislation isn’t perfect, it’s the result of hard-fought compromises from everyone involved. Arizonans can rest assured that their voices will be heard and that our elections will run free of political interference. Moving forward, I hope we can continue working together in this spirit of bipartisanship and do what’s right for the citizens of our great state.”
Democratic Legislative Leaders also offered their perspective in a caucus press release.
Senate Leader Mitzi Epstein relayed:
From the moment negotiations began we had the simple request that the fix to this issue must not
be weaponized to harm voters, and today I can confidently say that we have been successful. I applaud the work of Senator Priya Sundareshan and our staff that made sure this hard-fought bipartisan solution made it across the finish line. This is a moment of celebration because collaboration works. Arizonans have asked time and again for us to find common-sense bipartisan solutions to the state’s biggest problems and we have delivered.”
House Leader Lupe Contreras commented:
“Our goal was a clean fix, and this bill comes very close. It’s not perfect, but it is a true bi-partisan
compromise that will protect voters and help keep our elections free, fair, and secure. I’m proud of the work our members did to keep this plan alive and moving forward, including Representative Laura Terech who was instrumental to our success.”
The Arizona Senate Democrats also released State Senator Priya Sundareshan’s comments where she explained her vote for the bill, stating:
“I want to acknowledge and even celebrate the spirit of bipartisanship that gets us to this outcome. Earlier on in the week, our caucus…had a number of issues with the bill as presented. Those were the cure period, the primary move, the high schools, and the signature verification piece. But through the negotiations that have taken place over the course of this week, we were able to satisfy those concerns and importantly, we feel confident that the voters of Arizona are protected and that every eligible voter will have their vote counted and that is fundamental. I want to thank everyone who participated in that process from our staff and our leadership and my elections committee colleagues as well.
Representative Laura Terech posted:
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