How to improve Arizona’s Election System
Arizona has a deeply polarized and closely divided electorate, so elections are close, most notably within the last few years. Arizona has only recently become a swing state; ten years ago, Republicans dominated elections in Arizona now it is significantly closer. Many people have criticized how long the election results take in Arizona. The slow speed of preliminary unofficial election results in Arizona is not a new phenomenon; election results have been slow in Arizona for a while. It is much more contentious now because elections are so close, and several candidates have made unfounded claims of election fraud. I don’t mind election results taking a while, and I like the election system in Arizona; however, delayed election results allows candidates to sow distrust in the process, which has led to intimidation of election officials.
The “Late Early” Problem
A significant reason why election results take so long in Arizona is that the law allows people to drop off their absentee ballots at any polling location in the county on election day. That law means that election officials must scramble to process hundreds of thousands of votes last minute, frequently after the polls have already closed on election night. In Arizona, prohibiting individuals from dropping their ballots on election day would be unrealistic. Approximately 1 in 5 Arizona voters voted by dropping off their absentee ballot at a polling location on election day in the 2022 midterm elections. One solution would be to allow voters who dropped off their ballot at a polling location last minute to show a valid ID instead of having to go through the time-consuming signature verification process. In Arizona, ballots that are dropped off at a voting location on election day are allowed to be retrieved once the polls close at 8 pm on election night, which ultimately slows down the process. One idea would be to allow election officials to retrieve those ballots earlier, which would give them to process those ballots. These Ideas are Realistic and would help improve confidence in election results.
Other Ideas for improving election results
One idea that could help speed up election results would be to require votes to be tabulated continuously and not allow for breaks in the middle of the night. A continuous tabulation law would improve confidence; however, it could be more work for election and poll workers. Arizona Secretary of State Adrian Fontes and Michigan Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson suggested a variety of proposals that they say will improve the election process. Benson and Fontes suggested, along with other election officials suggested, that state legislatures implement policies to help voting access and election integrity. Some proposals suggested include allowing more public access to the election process, increasing penalties for individuals who threaten election officials and adopting policies that expand access, like same-day and automatic voter registration; all are good ideas, but they may face opposition in Arizona, with a conservative legislature. Maricopa County recorder Stephen Richer has suggested changes to Arizona election laws in a 28-page report. In conclusion, a robust discussion needs to be had about maintaining voting access well and also improve confidence in Arizona’s election system. Hopefully, election laws will prior to the 2024 election cycle.
