Ducey Vetoes Arizona Bill Restricting Early Ballots
WASHINGTON, D.C. — Arizona Gov. Doug Ducey (R) vetoed a slate of bills this week in an effort to pressure the state Legislature to pass a state budget. The bills range across the ideological spectrum and were vetoed to make a point rather than as a statement of lack of support from the governor. However, one of the bills would have significantly limited who could be sent an early voting ballot.
House Bill 2792 banned election officials from sending mail-in ballots to anyone who was not on the state’s Permanent Early Voting List or who has not explicitly requested a mail-in ballot. Administrators across the country sent ballot request forms and mail-in ballots to eligible voters last year in an effort to alert voters of all their voting options and encourage the use of mail-in voting during the pandemic.
H.B. 2792 had passed both chambers of the Republican-majority Legislature before heading to the governor’s desk. However, on the first vote it did not have the two-thirds majority that would be needed if the Legislature attempts to override the governor’s veto.