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Federal judge rules against Arizona law that 'disenfranchised' Native voters

A sign marks the entrance to a voting precinct on the first day of early voting in the general election in Phoenix, Oct. 12, 2022.
Matt York
/
AP Photo
A sign marks the entrance to a voting precinct on the first day of early voting in the general election in Phoenix, Oct. 12, 2022.

A federal judge has blocked a 2022 law that advocates say disenfranchised thousands of Native American voters.

HB 2494 required all registered voters to provide proof of a physical address to cast a ballot. But the Tohono O’odham Nation, Gila River Indian Community and Native youth said in a lawsuit that more than 40,000 homes on Native American reservations across the state don’t have a physical address.

The judge ruled that the bill’s address requirements must be liberally interpreted so that a standard street address isn’t required to vote.

Instead, numerous documents can be used to meet the requirement, such as an Arizona-issued ID that lists a P.O. Box or any tribal identification document regardless of the address.

Numerous tribal leaders and advocates praised the decision.