Arizona Secretary of State says state leaders need to fix election infrastructure issues
Jan 6, 2025, 4:45 AM
PHOENIX — Although fixing Arizona elections infrastructure would be costly, it would be a worthy investment, according to Secretary of State Adrian Fontes.
“We’re in desperate need of updating some systems,” Fontes told KTAR News 92.3 FM’s The Mike Broomhead Show on Friday.
There’s a lot that needs improvement, he added.
Why fixing Arizona elections is important to Adrian Fontes
Many of the issues that plague Arizona elections are technical.
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“The whole documented proof of citizenship thing, then the voter registration thing, has really brought to light some of the significant infrastructure weaknesses that we have in our technology systems,” Fontes said.
His first idea for fixing Arizona elections relates to the Arizona Voter Information Database (AVID), which Fontes said needs an overhaul.
However, he’s also concerned about Arizona’s election night reporting tool, which uses a coding system that’s written in-house. Its longevity hinges on a lone 70-year-old programmer who understands how the system works. It would cost $4 million to fix this issue.
“We’ve been a penny wise, a pound foolish when it comes to some of the most critical systems,” Fontes said. “We’ve been asking for a lot of these kinds of funding and, the last couple cycles, have not received what we need.”
It would behoove those who claim an interest in election integrity to invest in election infrastructure, he added.
What impact would fixing Arizona elections have?
Significant infrastructure weaknesses were brought to the light during the recent election night.
“Our IT infrastructure was so undependable at the executive tower that we actually had to move to a separate facility where we had much more dependable systems to stand up for election night,” Fontes said.
Fixing Arizona election infrastructure infrastructure would help cut out delays like this, he added.
“Hopefully, regardless of leadership anywhere else, the legislature and the folks in all the budgeting offices will be able to see we’re just doing the work and we just need the funding to make it happen for Arizonans,” Fontes said.
