Arizona v. Inter Tribal Counsel of Arizona:
The U.S. Supreme Court decided in a 7-2 decision to strike down an Arizona state law that required prospective voters to provide documented proof of citizenship before voting. The Supreme Court found that a federal law requiring states to use a federal form preempted Arizona’s state law requiring documented proof of citizenship. One of the questions included on the federal form requires citizens to answer whether or not he or she is a citizen, requires a signature for the purpose of swearing under penalty of perjury to the accuracy of the answer to the question. In contrast, the state law requires documented proof of citizenship such as a photocopy of the applicant’s passport or birth certificate, a driver’s license number demonstrating U.S. citizenship, evidence of naturalization, tribal identification, or other documents or methods of proof. The Court found that such requirements were preempted by federal law, which only required a prospective voter to include the federal form when mailing in his or her ballot.
Read Full Opinion Here.
