Edited by: James Joseph | Managing Editor for Long-Form Content

With just a matter of days until the US election. on November 5, this article, by JURIST’s New Managing Editor Derren Chan, Derren highlights the critical role of Arizona in the 2024 US presidential election, emphasizing key issues like abortion rights and immigration policy that are on the ballot. As voters approach the election on November 5, concerns about voter intimidation and competitive House and Senate races add to the significance of their decisions. 

Voters in battleground states for the 2024 US election face decisions about candidates and social issues – many such issues have been modified in the past few years by the political and legal processes.

There are 11 battleground states, or states where the president is predicted to win by a small percentage of votes, in the 2024 election. Presidental candidates therefore increase campaigning capacity to sway voters to vote for them before the election.

The battleground states include Arizona, Georgia, Michigan, Nevada, North Carolina, Michigan, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin. Arizona has 11 votes in the electoral college out of the 270 votes that make up the electoral college.

Arizona Right to Abortion Initiative is on the 2024 ballot

Since Roe v. Wade was overturned in 2022, Arizona has found a 159 year-old abortion ban enforceable. In August 2024, the Arizona Supreme Court ruled that a ballot initiative was valid that amended the right to abortion in the state constitution.

The ballot initiative, Proposition 139 or the Arizona Abortion Access Act, would codify abortions as a fundamental right, in which the state would not be able to interfere with unless it has a “compelling reason” and does so “in the least restrictive way possible”. Proposition 139 changes the point at which the state can interfere in the pregnancy from 14 weeks until the time of fetus viability, or when the fetus has a “significant likelihood of survival outside the uterus”, which is 24 weeks. The state will not be able to penalize any medical professional for assisting or aiding in abortion care.

Abortion advocates also criticized the state supreme court’s decision to allow political pamphlets to use the term “unborn human being”, which they state is politically charged, and wielded by anti-abortion advocates. The Arizona Supreme Court stated the term “unborn human being” is “impartial and objective” within the context of voting.

Arizona is one of 11 states to give voters the decision to codify abortion as a fundamental right in 2024.

The Arizona candidates seek to overhaul immigration policy in the border state

Next on the 2024 ballot is proposition 314, which would codify immigration procedures in the state, especially along the US-Mexico border. Proposition 314 states:

(1) applying for a public benefit by submitting a false document; (2) submitting false information to an employer regarding the person’s authorization to work in the United States; (3) entering Arizona from a foreign country at any location other than a lawful port of entry; (4) refusing to comply with a court order to return to the person’s country of origin or entry.

Under the Biden administration, illegal US-Mexico border crossings were down 29% as of July 2024. President Biden issued a proclamation June 4, 2024, that restricted border crossing for non-citizens, which led to less people illegally crossing of the border. Nonetheless, immigration remains a hot topic for the 2024 election. Both presidential candidates are hoping to build upon the Biden administration’s progress to curtail illegal entrance into the US.

Former President Donald Trump stated on X on October 19 that we will “finally going to build up our Country, defend our borders, and protect our cities” and that “we will not be invaded”.

Vice President Kamala Harris stated on X on October 11 that she “will work to fix our broken system of immigration – including securing our border and offering a humane pathway to earned citizenship for hardworking people”.

Questions remain over voter intimidation and fraud after recent elections

As people begin to flock to the in-person polls in Arizona, many voters may worry about voter intimidation at polling sites. This worry has increased after Former President Donald Trump’s claim of voter fraud after the 2020 election.

In April 2024, 18 individuals were indicted for conspiracy, fraud, and forgery for creating a false group of presidential electors to represent Trump in Arizona. These individuals planned to have Vice President Mike Pence reject the certification of President Joe Biden’s victory within the 2020 election.

Arizona law states that electioneering, or the process of political groups convince voters to vote for or against a candidate, is prohibited within 75 feet of a polling place. Arizona statute 16-411 provides;

The county recorder or other officer in charge of elections shall post on its website at least two weeks before election day a list of those polling places in which emergency conditions prevent electioneering and shall specify the reason the emergency designation was granted and the number of attempts that were made to find a polling place before granting an emergency designation.

While political activity is encouraged, tactics of voter intimidation are not. In 2022, the Arizona Attorney General referred to a case to the Department of Justice following a report in Maricopa County of individuals following voters and taking photos outside of polling locations.

Section 11(b) of the Voting Rights Act protects voters, and workers facilitating registering to vote and the process of voting. The act applies to both private actors and government officials.

Arizona House and Senate elections

The 2024 House and Senate elections are predicted to be one of the most competitive in the US, based on narrow victories of the 2022 election. In 2022 Republican Congressman David Schweikert won by less than one point in the Phoenix suburbs and is hoping for a larger margin of victory in the upcoming 2024 race. Juan Ciscomani, the Republican representative for Tucson, is running against Kirsten Engel, after winning by only two points against her in 2022. Within 2024 polls, Schweikert is projected to win by 0.9 percent and Ciscomani is projected to win by 1.5 percent.

Republican Senator Kari Lake – who is often compared to Former President Trump within her policies – is falling behind in the polls recently conducted in Arizona. Her recent downturn in votes is opposite to the thin margin of votes currently separating the presidential candidates. Her Democratic competitor, Ruben Gallego, is carrying the state with 53% of voters to Lake’s 45% of voters.

The 2024 election may see some voters in Arizona “ticket-splitting”, or casting a vote with one party for the president and casting a vote with another party for the House and Senate elections. As the election draws closer, Arizonans have important decisions to make about social issues that directly impact their communities as they count cast their votes on November 5.