Ballot drop box observers face lawsuits from voting rights groups

Several voting rights groups are asking federal judges to stop ballot box observers from staking out Arizona voting locations.

Two legal challenges filed this week — one from the Arizona Alliance for Retired Americans and Voto Latino, another filed by Protect Democracy on behalf of The League of Women Voters of Arizona — target conservative group Clean Elections USA, which has organized drop box surveillance in the Phoenix area. The latter suit also names Lions of Liberty, a right-wing group in Yavapai County.

Neither organization immediately responded to The Arizona Republic's request for comment.

The intent and effect of the observers is to intimidate voters, according to the lawsuit filed by Protect Democracy. 

"Indeed, because of Defendants’ campaigns, Arizona voters who wish to lawfully use dropboxes must do so under threat that they will be monitored by armed vigilantes, have their faces and cars filmed, be baselessly reported to law enforcement, and have their reputations and personal safety put at risk," the lawsuit reads.

Protect Democracy is a national nonpartisan nonprofit that seeks to check authoritarian attacks, according to its website. The League of Women Voters, also a nonpartisan group, advocates for voting rights. The Arizona Alliance for Retired Americans is a progressive grassroots organization that supports seniors' issues and Voto Latino is a nonprofit focused on getting out the young Latino vote.

The lawsuits come days after ballot drop box watchers began taking photos and video of voters at Maricopa County's two outdoor ballot drop boxes near downtown Phoenix and Mesa. Voters also have reported seeing monitors at drop boxes in Yavapai County. 

Several Maricopa County leaders, including Recorder Stephen Richer and Sheriff Paul Penzone, have asked the drop box monitors to go home. Nevertheless, the groups have remained a constant presence at the voting locations.

So far, Arizona election officials have referred six voter intimidation complaints to federal authorities for investigation. All have been from the Phoenix area.

"The more folks that there are creating problems, the more deputies you're going to see on the streets focused on this," Penzone said at a Monday news conference. "We'll come and babysit polling sites because people want to misbehave, if that's what we have to do to protect democracy."

Democracy under threat: As ballot drop box stakeouts continue, new voter complaints flow in

Suits request injunctions preventing groups from gathering at drop boxes

With Election Day less than two weeks away, the legal challenges request that federal judges issue emergency orders to stop the groups from surveilling drop boxes.

"The threat to voters and to democratic participation is steadily increasing with each passing day," the Protect Democracy lawsuit states.

Penzone said Monday that his deputies will step in if observers threaten violence, attempt to block voters from accessing the ballot boxes or try to influence who voters cast ballots for.

The U.S. Department of Justice also has expressed interest in the complaints, and those who do not run afoul of state law still could be charged with voter intimidation by federal authorities.

The plaintiffs in the recent lawsuits are hoping that judicial action could come more swiftly than a federal investigation.

“We don’t want to wait for (the DOJ) to act," Protect Democracy attorney Ben Berwick told The Republic. "There are voters being intimidated every day, early voting is happening, Election Day is fast approaching and it is an urgent situation.”

Who are the defendants?

Lions of Liberty is a self-described "resolute nucleus of concerned, passionate conservative patriots" based in Prescott, a city of about 50,000 residents north of Phoenix.

It is headed by the former vice president of Arizona’s Oath Keeper chapter, Jim Arroyo. The group's website states the country has been "hijacked and undermined by global elites, communists, leftists, deep state bureaucrats, and fake news."

"We will NOT back down, give up or apologize for what we must do to win this fight," the website reads.

Clean Elections USA is a "a grassroots organization made up of law abiding patriots whose goal it is to preserve the integrity of our elections," according to its website.

The group's homepage makes reference to the widely debunked documentary "2,000 Mules," which alleges without proof that widespread ballot harvesting occurred during the 2020 presidential election.

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Its founder, Melody Jennings, is active on conservative social media platforms and has posted about her group's efforts to monitor drop boxes in Arizona.

"Knowing that we the citizens of the United States are protecting the rule of law is very satisfying," Jennings posted Monday on Truth Social.

Last week, she "reTruthed" a post from Republican secretary of state nominee Mark Finchem — the equivalent of a retweet on Twitter.

"WATCH ALL DROP BOXES. PERIOD. SAVE THE REPUBLIC," Finchem's post read.

Jennings is believed to reside in Oklahoma, according to court documents.

Sasha Hupka covers Maricopa County and regional issues for The Arizona Republic with a focus on voting and democracy. Do you have a tip about elections or questions about voting? Reach her at sasha.hupka@arizonarepublic.com. Follow her on Twitter: @SashaHupka.