Superior Court: Maricopa County Recorder’s Office may continue support for at-risk voters in medical isolation

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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE                                                           

Court ruling permits Maricopa County Recorder to continue support for at-risk voters in medical isolation

PHOENIX (October 5, 2020) - The Arizona Superior Court ruled today that Special Election Boards may continue to assist voters though video conferencing technology in certain circumstances.

 

The court issued a ruling on the declaratory relief filed by Maricopa County Recorder Adrian Fontes on Friday, September 25, 2020.

“In this ruling, the court set forth the principles which allow us to do what our policy sought to accomplish from the beginning,” Fontes said. “This is a win for accessibility. We will continue to provide this option to the most vulnerable population of Maricopa County voters when necessary, ensuring compliance with all applicable law.”

Since the COVID-19 pandemic began, Recorder Fontes has sought to provide reasonable accommodations to Maricopa County voters who are in medical isolation due to COVID-19 restrictions. Special Election Boards (SEBs), authorized under A.R.S. § 16-549, are made up of two members of different political parties. SEBs supports voters who are ill or have a disability in voting if they cannot vote in person or need assistance casting a ballot.

During the August Primary Election, the Recorder’s Office used video conferencing tools to assist voters who had restricted access due to COVID-19 and were physically unable to fill out a ballot themselves. The bipartisan Special Election Boards receive direction via the video conferencing technology from the voter to fill out the ballot on their behalf exactly as they would have had they met in person. The county served ten voters using this process, out of the more than 860,000 voters who cast ballots during the August Primary election.

 

Contact: Diana Solorio

Public Information Officer

dsolorio@risc.maricopa.gov

(602) 299-2751

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