9th Circuit Court of Appeals, San Franscisco
By Jeremy Duda | Arizona Mirror
The 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals has blocked an extended voter registration deadline ordered by a federal district court judge, but will still give Arizonans until Thursday to register to vote in the November election.
A three-judge panel issued its ruling Tuesday night, rejecting two advocacy organizations’ claim that the Oct. 5 registration deadline set by state law is unconstitutional because of the extent to which the COVID-19 pandemic hindered their registration efforts. U.S. District Court Judge Steven Logan agreed with that argument and ordered the state to extend the registration deadline to Oct. 23.
The judges agreed to Secretary of State Katie Hobbs’ request for a “grace period” that would allow registrations to continue temporarily, but said the five days she requested was too long. The 9th Circuit opted instead for a two-day period that will end on Thursday for those who still want to register in time to vote in the Nov. 3 general election.That will give some extra time to people who began the registration process with the expectation that the deadline would run through late October but haven’t yet completed it.
