The Arizona Supreme Court ruled Friday that nearly 98,000 people whose citizenship documents hadn’t been confirmed can vote in state and local races.
The court’s decision comes after officials uncovered a database error that for two decades mistakenly designated the voters as having access to the full ballot.
Secretary of State Adrian Fontes, a Democrat, and Stephen Richer, the Republican Maricopa County recorder, had disagreed on what status the voters should hold. Richer asked the high court to weigh in, saying Fontes ignored state law by advising county officials to let affected voters cast full ballots.
Fontes said not allowing the voters who believed they had satisfied voting requirements access to the full ballot would raise equal protection and due process concerns.
The high court agreed with Fontes. It said county officials lack the authority to change the voters’ statuses because those voters registered long ago and had attested under the penalty of law that they are citizens. The justices also said the voters were not at fault for the database error and also mentioned the little time that’s left before the Nov. 5 general election.
“We are unwilling on these facts to disenfranchise voters en masse from participating in state contests,” Chief Justice Ann Scott Timmer stated in the ruling.
Arizona is unique among states in that it requires voters to prove their citizenship to participate in local and state races. Voters can demonstrate citizenship by providing a driver’s license or tribal ID number, or they can attach a copy of a birth certificate, passport or naturalization documents.
Arizona considers drivers’ licenses issued after October 1996 to be valid proof of citizenship. However, a system coding error marked nearly 98,000 voters who obtained licenses before 1996 — roughly 2.5% of all registered voters — as full-ballot voters, state officials said.
The error between the state’s voter registration database and the Motor Vehicle Division would not have impacted the presidential race. But that number of votes could tip the scales in hotly contested races in the state Legislature, where Republicans have a slim majority in both chambers.
It also could affect ballot measures, including the constitutional right to abortion and criminalizing noncitizens for entering Arizona through Mexico at any location other than a port of entry.
In a post on the social platform X, Richer thanked the court for quickly reviewing the case and Fontes for partnering with him to address the error.
Authorities say a prominent California agriculture heir is accused of traveling to Arizona to kill his estranged wife amid a bitter divorce, a case now drawing national attention for its cross-state trail and high-profile ties.
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On today’s Digital Pregame Show presented by Little Caesars, J.B Long, D’Marco Farr, and Maurice Jones-Drew preview the Los Angeles Rams’ Week 18 matchup against the Arizona Cardinals at SoFi Stadium. The trio discuss key players to watch, game predictions, and more. Tune in for kickoff at 1:25pm PT on FOX.
Arizona State is bringing in Kentucky transfer quarterback Cutter Boley after he played 10 full games as a redshirt freshman in 2025, FootballScoop’s John Brice first reported with SunDevilSource’s Chris Karpman confirming.
He gives the Sun Devils a signal-caller with three years of eligibility who had major flashes as a young starter in the SEC, including a career-high 330 yards and five touchdown passes on 74.3% passing against Tennessee on Oct. 25.
The 6-foot-5, 220-pound Boley had 2,160 yards (65.8%), 15 touchdown passes and 12 interceptions on the season with 85 rushing yards and two scores on the ground.
He was expected to take a two-day visit beginning on Saturday, but he committed before getting to the second day.
ASU head coach Kenny Dillingham extended an offer to Boley as a high school junior while he was the 24th quarterback in the 2024 class and the coach was serving as offensive coordinator at Oregon.
Dillingham took more of an active role in the offense during the Sun Bowl on Wednesday, and he said postgame recent changes in administration have allowed him to focus more on football. It would make sense the active role carries over to the development of Boley.
He gets to ASU after the departure of Sam Leavitt, who has fittingly been linked to Kentucky in what could be a 1-for-1 transfer swap of quarterbacks.
The youngest SEC quarterback to get substantial time this season, Boley played mostly as a game manager with quick passes behind or near the line of scrimmage.
His six big-time throws — tracked by PFF as passes with “excellent ball location and timing, generally thrown further down the field and/or into a tight window” — were tied for last among 15 qualified SEC passers.
His 18 turnover-worthy plays, another PFF-tracked stat, were tied for fourth out of 15.
Comparing the stats to ASU’s quarterbacks this season, Leavitt had 18 big-time throws and 12 turnover-worthy plays in seven games. Jeff Sims had eight big-time throws and nine turnover-worthy plays in eight contests.
Because he has three years of eligibility remaining, Boley could eventually have to compete with young ASU quarterbacks Cam Dyer and Jake Fette, who will be redshirt and true freshmen, respectively, in 2026.
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