Arizona Senate President Warren Petersen says new bill will speed up election results
Dec 16, 2024, 5:00 AM
PHOENIX — Arizona Senate President Warren Petersen says a bill he unveiled Wednesday will speed up election results in the state.
SB1011 would cut off voters from dropping off early ballots the Friday before Election Day. Current Arizona law allows early ballots to be dropped off through Election Day.
Petersen, a Republican, said updated legislation is necessary after Arizona was the final state to determine a projected winner in the 2024 presidential race.
“This legislation will end the frustration,” Petersen told KTAR News 92.3 FM’s The Mike Broomhead Show on Friday. “It will increase confidence in our system because, you know, sadly with time or I guess justifiably with time, people have less trust.”
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“We live in this society quite frankly where we get things instantly, we have the internet, we can jump on and find things out.”
How would bill speed up Arizona’s election results?
Petersen said lawmakers, including three members of the Maricopa County Board of Supervisors, met with Florida officials recently to discuss their process.
A cutoff for early ballots would allow elections officials to speed up counting ahead of Election Day. The bill would add two extra days of early voting, an addition Petersen said would ensure voters aren’t disenfranchised.
Opponents have argued the bill is voter suppression and could cause logistical issues because of the state’s large county sizes.
“So, this argument of somebody trying to say you’re disfranchising voters is completely ridiculous because we added two more days of early voting,” Petersen said. “And not only that, come on, we have 29 days of early voting.”
Those who want to turn in an early ballot after that deadline aren’t out of luck, either.
Voters can drop their ballots off on Election Day at their county recorder’s office and sign an early voting certificate, according to the bill.
