Ninth Circuit Upholds Arizona Voter Registration Law, Rejects Outreach Groups' Standing

An en banc Ninth Circuit unanimously affirmed Arizona's 2022 Senate Bill 1260, requiring county recorders to cancel duplicate voter registrations and making it a felony for officials to register voters already listed in another state. The court concluded that the nonprofit groups Alliance for Retired Americans and Voto Latino lack standing to challenge the cancellation provision because they have not shown a concrete injury, echoing a Supreme Court precedent on organizational standing.

Although the groups may contest the felony provision, the judges read the statutory language as likely targeting voting instruments, not registration or mobilization efforts, rendering success on the merits doubtful. The opinion noted Arizona Attorney General Kris Mayes' refusal to enforce the felony clause but clarified that her stance does not bind local prosecutors. Judges Daniel Bress and Lawrence VanDyke authored separate concurrences, arguing the majority's standing analysis departs from Supreme Court guidance. The ruling restores the law after a prior injunction was lifted, leaving Arizona's voter-registration framework unchanged.