Arizona Secretary of State Adrian Fontes has released the names of some 218,000 voters who lack documentation proving their citizenship on file, following an order from the state's appeals court. The court mandate came in response to legal action from America First Legal, with Stephen Miller, a former adviser to President Donald Trump, at its helm. During a press conference on Nov. 4, Fontes expressed his concerns, "I think they're planning on knocking on their doors and trying to intimidate them out of voting," Fontes said, as reported by Fox 10 Phoenix.
This development has its roots in the discovery by the Maricopa County Recorder’s Office of the aforementioned voters who managed to register without providing necessary citizenship documents due to a system error extending back to 2004. Maricopa County's Stephen Richer indicated, "This flaw has existed since 2004. In every county across the state," and emphasized that most of the affected voters are likely U.S. citizens. Despite earlier assertions that the release could spur voter intimidation, Fontes assured affected individuals, "You can vote a full ballot," as per Fox 10 Phoenix.
The information will not be distributed until after the general election on Nov. 5 and can only be shared with specific local political representatives and Arizona county recorders at this time. Fontes, reflecting on the situation, shared, "I, again, want to apologize to some of those voters out there who are feeling a little bit uneasy about some of these folks having your name and personal identifying information," in a statement obtained by AZFamily.
Individuals curious about whether their data was exposed can access the state’s Voter Information Portal. Fontes reiterated the legitimacy of the affected voters’ status, asserting, "Every single person on that list has sworn, under penalty of perjury, that they are a U.S. citizen. And eligible to vote," according to Fox 10 Phoenix.