The Superior Court of Arizona ordered the state’s Secretary of State Adrian Fontes on Thursday to release a list containing over 200,000 names of individuals who registered to vote without providing proof of citizenship.
America First Legal (AFL) announced their lawsuit against Fontes and the secretary of state’s office on Oct. 3, requesting the names of an estimated 218,000 people who registered to vote but did not comply with the swing state’s law of providing proof of citizenship. The law group’s senior counsel, James Rogers, called out Fontes for not “immediately” sharing the list of individuals and stated the actions taken were about “restoring transparency,” according to a press release by AFL.
“A majority of Arizonans no longer trust the election system of our state. One of the reasons is the lack of transparency from our state’s elected officials. When Secretary Fontes discovered the glitch that allowed 218,000 individuals to register without providing proof of citizenship, he should have immediately shared the list of affected individuals with Arizona’s county recorders, who are in charge of verifying the citizenship of voters,” Rogers said.
“Instead, he has jealously guarded the list, refusing to share it with anyone. This suit was about restoring transparency and ensuring that county recorders can do their jobs by verifying the citizenship of voters,” Rogers continued. “It is unfortunate that Secretary Fontes so aggressively opposed our common-sense efforts to help restore trust in our state’s election system. This was a case we never should have needed to file.”
In September, Fontes revealed that a “longtime computer glitch” allowed an estimated 218,000 individuals to register; however, he refused to release the names when requested by the Strong Communities Foundation of Arizona, also known as “EZAZ.org,” according to the press release.
While Fontes testified that his office only had about 98,000 names due to the Arizona Motor Vehicles Division not providing the full list, the court ruled that “[h]is testimony suggested that he lacked detailed familiarity with the AZSOS’s efforts with regard to the issue and with regard to the records in the possession of the AZSOS related to the 218,000 individuals.”
EZAZ.org is reportedly set to immediately release the list of names to the County Recorders as well as the leadership and election committees of the Arizona House and Senate once it’s obtained, according to the press release.
Fontes’ Office did not immediately respond to the Daily Caller News Foundation’s request for comment.
Featured Image Credit: Gage Skidmore from Peoria, AZ, United States of America
