Gonzalez v. State of Arizona
At the Supreme Court argument in the Indiana Voter I.D. case (Crawford v. Marion County Election Board) there was much discussion about how most election fraud takes place - not at the voting booth, but at voter registration. The loopholes in voter registration, (including the "Motor Voter" Act that permits voter registration at the DMV) received a good deal of attention during the oral argument.
The American Unity Legal Defense Fund is monitoring new voter registration laws throughout the country. The Voter identification battle is now shifting to proof of citizenship.
Arizona’s new law requiring proof of citizenship in order to register to vote has been challenged in court by the Mexican American Legal Defense Fund and other activist groups. The lower federal court upheld Arizona’s law.
The case was then appealed to the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit. The American Unity Legal Defense Fund filed an amicus brief supporting Arizona’s law. The brief provided the Court with information about ACORN’s massive voter fraud and urged that requiring proof of citizenship is the best way to stop the growing problem of non-citizen voters.
In the fall of 2010, a three-judge panel of the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals struck down Arizona's law. However a full 11-judge panel agreed to rehear the case and oral argument is set for June 21, 2011.
The importance of this case is clear. The federal government, which has never participated in this case, has filed an Amicus brief and asked to participate in oral argument. If Arizona is successful, many more states will follow with similar laws to protect election integrity in the United States.
This area of litigation promises to grow. In 2007 nineteen states introduced bills to require proof of citizenship in order to register to vote. New bills were introduced in 2008 and 2009 state legislative sessions. These state legislatures will be watching the Arizona appeal. If Arizona is successful, many more states will follow with similar laws to protect election integrity in the United States.
Articles
- Retired O’Connor Still Making Trouble, National Review Online, Oct 2010
- Voter ID Battle Shifts to Proof of Citizenship by Ian Urbina, New York Times, May 12, 2008