early voting; hours; emergency voting

HB2510 - 572R - I Ver

REFERENCE TITLE:
early voting; hours; emergency voting

State of Arizona

House of Representatives

Fifty-seventh Legislature

Second Regular Session

2026

HB 2510

Introduced by

Representatives
Stahl Hamilton: Abeytia, Blattman, Cavero, Connolly, Contreras P, Crews, De
Los Santos, Garcia, Gutierrez, Liguori, Sandoval, Simacek, Travers, Villegas

AN
ACT

amending sections 16-411 and 16-542,
Arizona Revised Statutes; relating to conduct of elections.

(TEXT OF BILL BEGINS ON NEXT PAGE)

Be it enacted by the Legislature of the State of Arizona:

Section 1. Section 16-411, Arizona Revised
Statutes, is amended to read:

START_STATUTE
16-411.

Designation of election precincts and polling places; voting
centers; electioneering; wait times

A. The board of supervisors of each county, on or
before October 1 of each year preceding the year of a general election, by an
order, shall establish a convenient number of election precincts in the county
and define the boundaries of the precincts as follows:

1. The election precinct boundaries shall be
established so as to be included within election districts prescribed by law
for elected officers of the state and its political subdivisions, including
community college district precincts, except those elected officers provided
for in titles 30 and 48.

2. If after October 1 of the year preceding the year
of a general election the board of supervisors must further adjust precinct
boundaries due to the redistricting of election districts as prescribed by law
and to comply with this subsection, the board of supervisors shall adjust these
precinct boundaries as soon as is practicable.

B. At least twenty days before a general or primary
election, and at least ten days before a special election, the board shall
designate one polling place within each precinct where the election shall be
held, except that:

1. On a specific finding of the board, included in
the order or resolution designating polling places pursuant to this subsection,
that no suitable polling place is available within a precinct, a polling place
for that precinct may be designated within an adjacent precinct.

2. Adjacent precincts may be combined if boundaries
so established are included in election districts prescribed by law for state
elected officials and political subdivisions including community college
districts but not including elected officials prescribed by titles 30 and
48. The officer in charge of elections may also split a precinct for
administrative purposes.� The polling places shall be listed in separate
sections of the order or resolution.

3. On a specific finding of the board that the
number of persons who are listed as early voters pursuant to section 16-544
and who are not expected to have their ballots tabulated at the polling place
as prescribed in section 16-579.02 is likely to substantially reduce the
number of voters appearing at one or more specific polling places at that
election, adjacent precincts may be consolidated by combining polling places
and precinct boards for that election. The board of supervisors
shall ensure that a reasonable and adequate number of polling places will be
designated for that election.� Any consolidated polling places shall be listed
in separate sections of the order or resolution of the board.

4. On a specific resolution of the board, the board
may authorize the use of voting centers in place of or in addition to
specifically designated polling places. A voting center shall allow
any voter in that county to receive the appropriate ballot for that voter on
election day after presenting identification as prescribed in section 16-579
and to lawfully cast the ballot. Voting centers may be established
in coordination and consultation with the county recorder, at other county
offices or at other locations in the county deemed appropriate.

5. On a specific resolution of the
board of supervisors that is limited to a specific election date and that is
voted on by a recorded vote, the board may authorize the county recorder or
other officer in charge of elections to use emergency voting centers as
follows:

(a) The board shall specify in the
resolution the location and the hours of operation of the emergency voting
centers.

(b) A qualified elector voting at an
emergency voting center shall provide identification as prescribed in section
16-579, except that notwithstanding section 16-579, subsection A,
paragraph 2, for any voting at an emergency voting center, the county recorder
or other officer in charge of elections may allow a qualified elector to update
the elector's voter registration information as provided for in the secretary
of state's instructions and procedures manual adopted pursuant to section 16-452.

(c) If an emergency voting center
established pursuant to this section becomes unavailable and there is not
sufficient time for the board of supervisors to convene to approve an alternate
location for that emergency voting center, the county recorder or other officer
in charge of elections may make changes to the approved emergency voting center
location and shall notify the public and the board of supervisors regarding
that change as soon as practicable. The alternate emergency voting
center shall be as close in proximity to the approved emergency voting center
location as possible.

C. If the board fails to designate the place for
holding the election, or if it cannot be held at or about the place designated,
the justice of the peace in the precinct, two days before the election, by an
order, copies of which the justice of the peace shall immediately post in three
public places in the precinct, shall designate the place within the precinct
for holding the election. If there is no justice of the peace in the
precinct, or if the justice of the peace fails to do so, the election board of
the precinct shall designate and give notice of the place within the precinct
of holding the election. For any election in which there are no
candidates for elected office appearing on the ballot, the board may
consolidate polling places and precinct boards and may consolidate the
tabulation of results for that election if all of the following apply:

1. All affected
voters are notified by mail of the change at least thirty-three days
before the election.

2. Notice of the
change in polling places includes notice of the new voting location, notice of
the hours for voting on election day and notice of the telephone number to call
for voter assistance.

3. All affected voters receive information on early
voting that includes the application used to request an early voting ballot.

D. The board is not required to designate a polling
place for special district mail ballot elections held pursuant to article 8.1
of this chapter, but the board may designate one or more sites for voters to
deposit marked ballots until 7:00 p.m. on the day of the election.

E. Except as provided in subsection F of this
section, a public school shall provide sufficient space for use as a polling
place for any city, county or state election when requested by the officer in
charge of elections.

F. The principal of the school may deny a request to
provide space for use as a polling place for any city, county or state election
if, within two weeks after a request has been made, the principal provides a
written statement indicating a reason the election cannot be held in the
school, including any of the following:

1. Space is not available at the school.

2. The safety or welfare of the children would be
jeopardized.

G. Beginning in 2026, the department of
administration shall coordinate with state agencies and counties to provide
available and appropriate state-owned facilities for use as a voting
location for any city, county or state election when requested by the officer
in charge of elections.

H. The board shall make available to the public as a
public record a list of the polling places for all precincts in which the
election is to be held.

I. Except in the case of an emergency, any facility
that is used as a polling place on election day or that is used as an early
voting site during the period of early voting shall allow persons to
electioneer and engage in other political activity outside of the seventy-five
foot limit prescribed by section 16-515 in public areas and parking lots
used by voters. This subsection does not allow the temporary or
permanent construction of structures in public areas and parking lots or the
blocking or other impairment of access to parking spaces for voters.� 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. If the polling place is not on the website list of
polling places with emergency designations, electioneering and other political
activity shall be allowed outside of the seventy-five foot
limit. If an emergency arises after the county recorder or other
officer in charge of elections' initial website posting, the county recorder or
other officer in charge of elections shall update the website as soon as is
practicable to include any new polling places, shall highlight the polling
place location on the website 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.

J. For the purposes of this section, a county
recorder or other officer in charge of elections shall designate a polling
place as an emergency polling place and thus prohibit persons from
electioneering and engaging in other political activity outside of the seventy-five
foot limit prescribed by section 16-515 but inside the property of the
facility that is hosting the polling place if any of the following occurs:

1. An act of God renders a previously set polling
place as unusable.

2. A county recorder or other officer in charge of
elections has exhausted all options and there are no suitable facilities in a
precinct that are willing to be a polling place unless a facility can be given
an emergency designation.

K. The secretary of state shall provide through the
instructions and procedures manual adopted pursuant to section 16-452 the
maximum allowable wait time for any election that is subject to section 16-204
and provide for a method to reduce voter wait time at the polls in the primary
and general elections. The method shall consider at least all of the
following for primary and general elections in each precinct:

1. The number of ballots voted in the prior primary
and general elections.

2. The number of registered voters who voted early
in the prior primary and general elections.

3. The number of registered voters and the number of
registered voters who cast an early ballot for the current primary or general
election.

4. The number of registered voters whose early
ballots were tabulated on-site as prescribed in section 16-579.02
in the prior primary and general elections.

5. The number of election board members and clerks
and the number of rosters that will reduce voter wait time at the polls.
END_STATUTE

Sec. 2. Section 16-542, Arizona Revised
Statutes, is amended to read:

START_STATUTE
16-542.

Request for ballot; civil penalties; violation; classification

A. Within ninety-three days before any
election called pursuant to the laws of this state, an elector may make a
verbal or signed request to the county recorder, or other officer in charge of
elections for the applicable political subdivision of this state in whose jurisdiction
the elector is registered to vote, for an official early ballot.� In addition
to name and address, the requesting elector shall provide the date of birth and
state or country of birth or other information that if compared to the voter
registration information on file would confirm the identity of the
elector. If the request indicates that the elector needs a primary
election ballot and a general election ballot, the county recorder or other
officer in charge of elections shall honor the request. For any
partisan primary election, if the elector is not registered as a member of a
political party that is entitled to continued representation on the ballot
pursuant to section 16-804, the elector shall designate the ballot of
only one of the political parties that is entitled to continued representation
on the ballot and the elector may receive and vote the ballot of only that one
political party, which also shall include any nonpartisan offices and ballot
questions, or the elector shall designate the ballot for nonpartisan offices
and ballot questions only and the elector may receive and vote the ballot that
contains only nonpartisan offices and ballot questions. The county
recorder or other officer in charge of elections shall process any request for
an early ballot for a municipal election pursuant to this
subsection. The county recorder
may

shall
establish on-site early voting locations at the
county
recorder's office, which shall be open and available for
use beginning the same day that a county begins to send out the early
ballots. The county recorder may also establish any other early
voting locations in the county the
county
recorder deems
necessary.
The early voting locations, including the
locations at the county recorder's office, shall be open until 7:00 p.m. on the
Saturday and Sunday immediately preceding election day. On the
Monday immediately preceding election day, the early voting locations,
including the locations at the county recorder's office, shall be open until at
least 3:00 p.m. and may be open until 7:00 p.m., as determined by the county
recorder.
� Any on-site early voting location or other early voting
location shall require each elector to present identification as prescribed in
section 16-579 before receiving a ballot.� Notwithstanding section 16-579,
subsection A, paragraph 2, at any on-site early voting location or other early
voting location the county recorder or other officer in charge of elections may
provide for a qualified elector to update the elector's voter registration
information as provided for in the secretary of state's instructions and
procedures manual adopted pursuant to section 16-452.

B. Notwithstanding subsection A of this section, a
request for an official early ballot from an absent uniformed services voter or
overseas voter as defined in the uniformed and overseas citizens absentee
voting act (P.L. 99-410; 52 United States Code section 20310) or a voter
whose information is protected pursuant to section 16-153 that is
received by the county recorder or other officer in charge of elections more
than ninety-three days before the election is valid. If
requested by the absent uniformed services or overseas voter, or a voter whose
information is protected pursuant to section 16-153, the county recorder
or other officer in charge of elections shall provide to the requesting voter
early ballot materials through the next regularly scheduled general election
for federal office immediately following receipt of the request unless a different
period of time, which does not exceed the next two regularly scheduled general
elections for federal office, is designated by the voter.

C. The county recorder or other officer in charge of
elections shall mail the early ballot and the envelope for its return postage
prepaid to the address provided by the requesting elector within five days
after receipt of the official early ballots from the officer charged by law
with the duty of preparing ballots pursuant to section 16-545, except
that early ballot distribution shall not begin more than twenty-seven days
before the election. If an early ballot request is received on or
before the thirty-first day before the election, the early ballot shall
be distributed not earlier than the twenty-seventh day before the election and
not later than the twenty-fourth day before the election.

D. Only the elector may be in possession of that
elector's unvoted early ballot. If a complete and correct request is
made by the elector within twenty-seven days before the election, the
mailing must be made within forty-eight hours after receipt of the
request. Saturdays, Sundays and other legal holidays are excluded
from the computation of the forty-eight-hour period prescribed by this
subsection.� If a complete and correct request is made by an absent uniformed
services voter or an overseas voter before the election, the regular early
ballot shall be transmitted by mail, by fax or by other electronic format
approved by the secretary of state within twenty-four hours after the
early ballots are delivered pursuant to section 16-545, subsection B,
excluding Sundays.

E. In order to be complete and correct and to
receive an early ballot by mail, an elector's request that an early ballot be
mailed to the elector's residence or temporary address must include all of the
information prescribed by subsection A of this section and must be received by
the county recorder or other officer in charge of elections not later than 5:00
p.m. on the eleventh day preceding the election. An elector who
appears personally not later than 7:00 p.m. on the Friday preceding the
election at an on-site early voting location that is established by the
county recorder or other officer in charge of elections shall be given a ballot
after presenting identification as prescribed in section 16-579 and shall
be allowed to vote at the on-site location.� Notwithstanding section 16-579,
subsection A, paragraph 2, at any on-site early voting location the county
recorder or other officer in charge of elections may provide for a qualified
elector to update the elector's voter registration information as provided for
in the secretary of state's instructions and procedures manual adopted pursuant
to section 16-452. If an elector's request to receive an early
ballot is not complete and correct but complies with all other requirements of
this section, the county recorder or other officer in charge of elections shall
attempt to notify the elector of the deficiency of the request.

F. Unless an elector specifies that the address to
which an early ballot is to be sent is a temporary address, the
county

recorder may use the information from an early ballot request form to update
voter registration records.

G. The county recorder or other officer in charge of
early balloting shall provide an alphabetized list of all voters in the
precinct who have requested and have been sent an early ballot to the election
board of the precinct in which the voter is registered not later than the day
before the election.

H. As a result of experiencing an emergency between
7:00 p.m. on the Friday preceding the election and 5:00 p.m. on the Monday
preceding the election, qualified electors may request to vote in the manner
prescribed by the board of supervisors of their respective
county. Before voting pursuant to this subsection, an elector who
experiences an emergency shall provide identification as prescribed in section
16-579 and shall sign a statement under penalty of perjury that states
that the person is experiencing or experienced an emergency after 7:00 p.m. on
the Friday immediately preceding the election and before 5:00 p.m. on the
Monday immediately preceding the election that would prevent the person from
voting at the polls.� Signed statements received pursuant to this subsection
are not subject to inspection pursuant to title 39, chapter 1, article 2.� For
the purposes of this subsection, "emergency" means any unforeseen
circumstances that would prevent the elector from voting at the polls.

I. Notwithstanding section 16-579, subsection
A, paragraph 2, for any voting pursuant to subsection H of this section, the
county recorder or other officer in charge of elections may allow a qualified
elector to update the elector's voter registration information as provided for
in the secretary of state's instructions and procedures manual adopted pursuant
to section 16-452.

J. A candidate, political committee or other
organization may distribute early ballot request forms to voters. If
the early ballot request forms include a printed address for return, the
addressee shall be the political subdivision that will conduct the election.�
Failure to use the political subdivision as the return addressee is punishable
by a civil penalty of up to three times the cost of the production and
distribution of the request.

K. All original and completed early ballot request
forms that are received by a candidate, political committee or other
organization shall be submitted within six business days after receipt by a
candidate, political committee or other organization or eleven days before the
election day, whichever is earlier, to the political subdivision that will
conduct the election. Any person, political committee or other
organization that fails to submit a completed early ballot request form within
the prescribed time is subject to a civil penalty of up to $25 per day for each
completed form withheld from submittal. Any person who knowingly
fails to submit a completed early ballot request form before the submission
deadline for the election immediately following the completion of the form is
guilty of a class 6 felony.

L. Except for a voter who is on the
active early voting list prescribed by section 16-544, a voter who
requests a onetime early ballot pursuant to this section or for an election
conducted pursuant to section 16-409 or article 8.1 of this chapter, a
county recorder, city or town clerk or other election officer may not deliver
or mail an early ballot to a person who has not requested an early ballot for
that election.� An election officer who knowingly violates this subsection is
guilty of a class 5 felony.

END_STATUTE