Voter ID rules for Prop. 200 delayed
State leaders argue over provision

Elvia DÃÂ*az
The Arizona Republic
Jun. 17, 2005 12:00 AM

An increasingly bitter feud among Arizona's top elected officials has thrown Proposition 200's voting provision into chaos, potentially jeopardizing the state's 2006 primary and general elections.

The portion of the initiative designed to prevent voter fraud at the polls probably won't take effect until September 2006, almost two years after voters approved the anti-illegal immigration measure.

The provision was supposed to become effective before municipal elections held earlier this year, but Secretary of State Jan Brewer, Attorney General Terry Goddard and Gov. Janet Napolitano couldn't agree on the specifics of how they would be carried out. advertisement




Goddard and Brewer are clashing over what identification should be acceptable at the polls, with Brewer saying street addresses are necessary and Goddard maintaining that would disenfranchise many voters, especially on tribal reservations.

Brewer and Napolitano disagree on whether voters need identification when casting provisional ballots used in special circumstances such as when people vote outside their districts. Brewer believes identification should be required, while Napolitano has said that would keep some legitimate voters from voting.

The delay in reaching an agreement means Arizonans probably won't have to show identification at the polls anytime soon. It also means voting glitches related to the new approach may not be worked out in time for the 2006 statewide elections, Goddard warned this week.

He said many Arizona residents could be denied the right to vote next year, leading to legal challenges that could overturn the statewide elections. They include races for governor, attorney general, secretary of state, the Legislature and other offices.

"If too many people are disenfranchised, they can challenge the entire election," Goddard told The Arizona Republic's Editorial Board on Tuesday. "We need some testing in a smaller election to correct any glitches."

Goddard called for the three to meet soon to begin working out the disagreements. He suggested that the Sept. 13 Phoenix city election could serve as a test run to work out glitches before the much larger elections next year.

Brewer's top aide, Kevin Tyne, discounted any possibility that the voting provisions would be carried out in Phoenix's September election, saying there is no time to do it.

"This is political gamesmanship," said Tyne, who said neither Brewer nor her staff would meet with Goddard to work out a compromise. He said it's her job, not his, to come up with new election procedures.

Technically, Goddard is Brewer's lawyer and, in that role, he interprets and advises her on how the measure is to be implemented. Brewer is in charge of drafting election procedures and carrying them out after she, Goddard and Napolitano sign off on them.

In a June 10 letter to Goddard, Brewer said he has "flip-flopped" on several key issues, including requiring legislation to implement the voting provisions and saying the address on identification cards must match the residence of the voter.

"It is not your job to tell me what rules need to be adopted or when they should adopted," Brewer wrote Goddard. "Your job is to advise me and approve or disapprove revisions to the (election) manual."

Goddard said he has been consistent but declined to elaborate, invoking attorney-client privilege.

The November ballot left some uncertainty about what identification is acceptable at the polls. Goddard believes rural Arizonans in general and Native Americans in particular could be kept from voting if they were asked to show identification with a street address. He said some reservations don't have street addresses, posing problems for those who would present utility bills as a form of identification, for instance.

"Every time you change the rules, a lot of folks are going to fall through the cracks," Goddard said, adding that no matter how widely the ID cards are defined as acceptable, some people will not have them when they vote. "They are going to come to the first election, and they are going to be out of luck."

Proposition 200 was designed to combat voting fraud, particularly among undocumented immigrants, and save the state millions annually by denying benefits to people in the country illegally. The portion of the initiative requiring Arizonans to produce proof of citizenship when registering to vote went into effect earlier this year.

Brewer has blamed Goddard and Napolitano for delaying implementation of the voting provisions. Tim Nelson, Napolitano's legal counsel, believes an agreement is possible but only if Brewer and her staff are willing to talk.

Gary Verburg, Phoenix's acting city attorney, said Phoenix welcomes the chance to be the first to carry out the voting provision but added that Arizona officials must agree on statewide procedures.

Vivian Juan-Saunders, chairwoman of the Tohono O'odham Nation, has objected to the new provisions because the forms of IDs as proposed by Brewer must contain a physical address. She has indicated that most American Indians and many rural Arizonans will be denied the right to vote if street addresses are required.

"Clearly, the new procedure for proof of voter identification at polls will keep people from voting, but it is barring the wrong people," she wrote state officials earlier this year.

Brewer wanted to start implementing the voting provisions in March's elections. Goddard determined the ID requirement at the polls can't be carried out until regulations are in place to guide poll workers on what is acceptable identification and a state law is amended to allow a voter who lacks sufficient ID to cast a provisional ballot.

Brewer got a bill approved to clear the way for her to carry out the ID mandate. But Napolitano vetoed the measure, arguing it would have denied voters without proper identification a provisional ballot.

Though the Justice Department cleared Brewer's proposal for implementation, Napolitano vetoed a second bill May 20, saying it's unwise to deny voters provisional ballots.

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