Mayor Romero and Rep. Hannley Condemn Voter Suppression Bills

Tucson Mayor Regina Romero and AZ Rep. Pamela Powers Hannley are calling on Republicans in the legislature and governor to table or veto several voter suppression bills.

Romero stated her strong opposition to SB 1713, SB 1485, and SB1106 – bills that would have the effect of restricting voting access to thousands of Arizonans if passed.

SB1713 imposes burdensome documentation requirements on voters, disproportionately harming low-income Arizonans and seniors. One in five Arizonans over the age of 70 lack access to a driver’s license, which this bill effectively requires for early ballot affidavits if one does not know their voter registration number.

SB1485 and SB1106 would make it easier for voters to be purged from the Permanent Early Voter List (PEVL), disproportionately affecting Arizonans living on reservations and communities of color.

Proponents of these bills argue that they are necessary for protecting election security yet are unable to cite any credible concerns about the security of our elections. Instead of making it more difficult to vote, we should be making it easier for Arizonans to participate in the democratic process. For example, in our local city elections, we mail every registered voter a ballot, regardless of whether they are signed up for PEVL.

“The last thing we need is another black eye, which is exactly what we would get if these voter disenfranchisement bills are signed into law. We’ve seen the corporate blowback and boycotts underway in Georgia – let us learn from our peers and our history and not repeat the mistakes of the past.”

Rep. Hannley spelled out the dangers of voter suppression bills HB 2723, HB2792, and HCR2023 in a video. “Arizona is No. 1 in voter suppression,” she said. “We have more voter suppression bills being considered in the Arizona legislature than anywhere else in the country. There’s at least 30 in the House,” she said.

“HB 2792 says it’s a class 5 felony for an election officer to mail a ballot to you that you didn’t request,” Hannley said. “But, if say there’s a pandemic and the election officer mails you a ballot so you can stay safe and vote from home, that election officer would get a felony charge for doing that.”

Half of Americans support expanding access to early and mail voting, while about 3 in 10 opposed the ideas and the rest had no opinion, according to The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research poll. Automatic voter registration was the most popular Democratic proposal in the survey, endorsed by 60% of Americans.

Generally, the partisan divide was stark, as many Republicans opposed measures that make it easier to register and vote and most Democrats embraced them. About three-quarters of Democrats supported no-excuse voting by mail, for example, but about 6 in 10 Republicans were opposed.