Arizonans vote no on Prop. 144, rejecting significant changes to voting procedures

This article was originally published by Votebeat, a nonprofit news organization reporting on voting access and election administration across the U.S.

Arizonans have voted to reject a ballot measure that would have tightened voting rules in the state, per the Associated Press.

As of Thursday at 7 p.m. Mountain Standard Time, with 89% of the expected vote reporting, 53% of the electorate had voted against the measure, dubbed Prop. 144. Another 47% had voted for it.

The measure, which the GOP-dominated state legislature referred to the ballot in an eleventh-hour vote earlier this year, stood to significantly alter voting in the state. It was among the most controversial ones facing voters on Tuesday.

Had it passed, Prop. 144 would have amended the state constitution to require all voters, even those who vote by mail, to provide ID (although it left the details of how to implement that requirement up to the state legislature).

In addition, the measure would have required counties to give voters who drop off their mail ballots at a polling place on Election Day the option to have their ballot counted on site, rather than transported back to a central location for tabulation. That would have meant new equipment and changes to voting procedures in most of the state’s voting jurisdictions.

The measure also would’ve prohibited noncitizens from contributing money to influence ballot measure contests, a tweak intended to close a loophole in existing state and federal campaign finance laws. Plus, it contained a broad provision suggesting state courts should use a lower standard of review to evaluate future election laws’ burden on voters, which would have made it harder to overturn restrictive voting laws.

The measure’s supporters argued that it would have improved election security and sped up vote counting in Arizona.

But its opponents — which included many of the state’s election officials — repeatedly said those promises were unrealistic, pointing out that many of the state’s recent elections have simply been too close to call on election night.

Instead, they claimed the measure was intended to hobble mail voting, which is wildly popular among Arizonans. Some also expressed concern that the measure’s broad language could have other consequences, such as giving the legislature wide leeway over election laws independent of the governor and judiciary.

“This is one of the greatest political longshot victories in Arizona history,” said Randy Keating, who chaired the committee opposing the measure. “It is a loud and unmistakable message that limiting how and where eligible voters can cast their ballot, in a blatant attempt to manipulate outcomes, will not be tolerated.”

Arizona Rep. Alex Kolodin, the GOP nominee for secretary of state and Prop. 144’s primary backer in the legislature, did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the measure’s defeat. He also lost his race on Tuesday.