Monday, December 13, 2021
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Sen. Michelle Ugenti-Rita Commends Court For Defeating Democrats' Continued Attempts to Undermine Elections
(Phoenix, State Capitol) --- Last week, the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals overturned a lower court ruling and reaffirmed Arizona’s long-standing practice of not curing mail-in ballots with missing signatures after the polls close on election day. The Democrat’s filed a lawsuit arguing this violated Arizona’s constitution.
In the 2021 legislative session, Senator Michelle Ugenti-Rita sponsored SB1003 which was enacted and prohibits a practice known as “ballot curing” which was the subject of this litigation. It was introduced to codify the longstanding position of most counties to not count ballots missing a signature, even though some counties were allowing additional time after the election to cure the missing signatures which often caused a delay in results and increased the potential for voter fraud.
"Mail-in ballots missing a signature after the polls close on election day are invalid and should not be counted as Democrats want. Our goal is to make this process as easy as possible for voters and election officials while maintaining fair and transparent voting practices. Despite every effort from the Democrats, the Courts have rebuked yet another attempt to undermine election integrity. While the opposition continues to make false claims of racism and voter suppression, the fact is the legislature has the constitutional authority to protect our election results and election system. It is unfortunate they continue to try to manipulate elections through the courts rather than focusing on what is best for the voter,” said Senator Michelle Ugenti-Rita (R-23).
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For more information, contact:
Kim Quintero, Director of Communications
Arizona State Senate Republican Caucus
Office: 602-926-3927