In 2022, the Arizona legislature passed—and then-Governor Ducey signed into law—a landmark election integrity bill: HB 2492. Authored by the Arizona Free Enterprise Club, the law bolsters safeguards to our election process by requiring proof of citizenship to register to vote, ensuring that only U.S. citizens are voting in our elections.
It’s commonsense legislation that is popular with the public and a blueprint for other states looking to adopt nearly identical bills. And why wouldn’t it be? U.S. citizens cannot go into France, Australia, or any other country throughout the world and vote in their elections, so why should citizens from other countries be allowed to vote in our elections?
Yet immediately after HB 2492 was passed, a consortium of liberal organizations and the Biden Justice department sued to stop the law from going into effect. Now, after multiple trips to the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals, one of which included a bizarre ruling that required an emergency appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court to let Arizona enforce our proof of citizenship requirements for the 2024 election (which we won), the entire law will now be going to the nation’s highest court.
We are confident that the Supreme Court will uphold the law in its entirety, but one issue about the litigation has been simmering beneath the surface: Arizona Attorney General Kris Mayes.
After taking office in January 2023, Mayes joined the lawsuit (which includes the state legislature) to “defend” HB 2492. But throughout the process, it’s been pretty obvious that her legal team has been doing as little as possible to protect the law from the onslaught of litigation from the left. When you follow the money, that doesn’t come as much of a surprise.
Of the dozen or so liberal groups that filed suit to stop the law, several spent huge sums of money in 2022 to get Kris Mayes elected as Arizona’s Attorney General. Just look at this list of donations to Mayes’ campaign right here. It’s riddled with groups that either give money to Mi Familia Vota (the lead plaintiff in the lawsuit against HB 2492), receive money from the group, are partners with the group, or have positions that stand in opposition to any election integrity measure in general. Chief among them is Arizona Wins, a lobbying organization founded in 2011 to oppose election integrity measures and enforcement of immigration laws in our state. Mi Familia Vota has received tens of thousands of dollars from Arizona Wins. Does that sound like a conflict of interest to you?
The liberal Ninth Circuit ruled against HB 2492 earlier this year, and most recently, it rejected a request for a full review from the court (although an astounding 11 judges dissented). Now, the case should be fast-tracked to the U.S. Supreme Court once again. But surprise, surprise. Mayes’ office appears to be slow walking the appeal. And can you guess why? Mayes knows that if she can hold out long enough, it would prevent the Supreme Court from hearing the case until after the 2026 general election (when Mayes will be up for reelection).
At this point, it’s obvious that Kris Mayes is trying to play both sides. On the one hand, she wants to say that she defended a wildly popular law with citizens across our state. On the other hand, she wants to do everything she can to appease her liberal friends by sandbagging the case.
That leaves just one solution. It’s time for Arizona Attorney General Kris Mayes to recuse herself from the defense of HB 2492 and let the legislature finish the job. The legal team representing the House and Senate is more than capable at handling the appeal and defending the law at the U.S. Supreme Court. And organizations like ours are more than happy to provide outside support to their legal efforts.
If she had any integrity, Mayes would be getting out of the way so the nation’s highest court can once again overturn the Ninth Circuit, return common sense to our voter registration process, and restore confidence in Arizona’s elections. Of course, given her history of politicizing the office with ridiculous lawfare that have resulted in embarrassing legal defeats, we suspect she will do everything she can to drive this lawsuit into a ditch.
Help Protect Freedom in Arizona by Joining Our Grassroots Network
Arizona needs to have a unified voice promoting economic freedom and prosperity, and the Free Enterprise Club is committed to making that happen. But we can’t do it alone. We need YOU!
Join our FREE Grassroots Action List to stay up to date on the latest battles against big government and how YOU can help influence crucial bills at the Arizona State Legislature.
Recent Comments