Established Fact
Federal court injunction entered; stayed by Ninth Circuit before election. Arizona Democratic Party v. Hobbs, No. 2:20-cv-01143 (D. Ariz. 2020), was a federal court action (not a consent decree) in which a district court entered an injunction requiring an extended cure period for unsigned absentee ballots. The Ninth Circuit stayed the injunction on October 6, 2020, before it took effect. As a result, no pre-election modification to Arizona’s signature verification procedures was operative during the 2020 election. U.S. Const. art. I, § 4 (Elections Clause) arguments regarding the injunction were not adjudicated on the merits before the election.
Citations
Arizona Democratic Party v. Hobbs, No. 2:20-cv-01143 (D. Ariz. 2020) (federal court order requiring extension of cure period for unsigned absentee ballots; subsequently stayed by the Ninth Circuit on October 6, 2020, before taking effect).
Stanford Healthy Elections Project — Case Tracker: AZ Democratic Party v. Hobbs (summarizing district court order and Ninth Circuit stay).
Ninth Circuit Stay Order, AZ Democratic Party v. Hobbs, No. 20-16759 (9th Cir. Oct. 6, 2020), Justia (staying district court injunction pending appeal; order entered prior to the November 2020 election, such that the injunction never took effect).
U.S. Const. art. I, § 4 (Elections Clause — state legislature authority over the time, place, and manner of elections).
A.R.S. § 16-550(A) (Arizona signature verification requirement for absentee ballots).