The Supreme Court on Thursday allowed Arizona to partially enforce laws requiring proof of citizenship before residents can register to vote.
In a brief order, the justices said Arizona can reject registrations from people who signed up using a state form but who never proved their citizenship. Those who signed up using a federal form, though, cannot be blocked from voting even if they haven’t submitted proof of citizenship.
The complicated ruling comes just as Arizona is preparing to print its ballots for the November election, and it is likely the first of many cases courts will hear over who is a valid voter.
A district judge had blocked Arizona’s enforcement of proof of citizenship for both the federal and state registration forms. Five justices ruled the law governing the state form can be revived. But six justices ruled the federal form citizenship law will remain on hold for this year’s election.
The dispute stems from the 1993 National Voter Registration Act, better known as motor-voter, which requires states to offer a simple form to sign up voters at places that deliver government services, such as motor vehicle bureaus.
That federal law only requires a signature of attestation as proof of citizenship.
The state also offers its own form for registering voters.
Amid questions of noncitizen voting, Republicans in Arizona pushed through legislation in 2022 demanding documentary proof.
The Republican National Committee had asked the Supreme Court to allow both citizenship proof provisions to move forward.
The Biden administration argued against that request.
Under the high court’s new ruling, it appears those who registered using the state form will be allowed to vote in federal races but not state contests.
Three justices, Clarence Thomas, Samuel A. Alito Jr. and Neil M. Gorsuch, said they would have allowed the entire state law to proceed.
Four justices, Sonia Sotomayor, Elena Kagan, Amy Coney Barrett and Ketanji Brown Jackson, said they would have blocked all of the law.
That left Chief Justice John G. Roberts Jr. and Brett M. Kavanaugh as the critical center of the ruling.
The justices did not explain their reasoning in the brief order.
RNC Chairman Michael Whatley hailed the decision.
“This is a major victory for election integrity that upholds a simple principle: American elections must be decided by American citizens,” he said. “The Supreme Court has sided with the RNC, and the American people, to protect the vote in November.”
• Stephen Dinan can be reached at sdinan@washingtontimes.com.
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