America First Legal sues Maricopa County recorder over not removing non-citizens from voter rolls

America First Legal has sued Maricopa County Recorder Stephen Richer over not removing non-citizens from the county voter rolls.

On Monday, AFL filed a lawsuit against Richer, on behalf of Strong Communities Foundation of Arizona and a registered voter and naturalized citizen, for allegedly refusing to verify the citizenship of voters registered in the county.

AFL sent letters to all 15 Arizona counties on July 16, demanding county election officials follow state and federal law by ensuring non-citizens were unable to vote, warning that legal action would be pursued if they didn’t by the following week.

Richer replied through his attorney, claiming that he was following the law by verifying the citizenship of voters. However, AFL argues that Richer’s claim is false because county voter rolls have had an increase in the number of registered voters without confirmed citizenship while he has served in office, and that databases have not been accessed to verify voters’ citizenship.

AFL has sued Richer for allegedly violating state law by not performing the monthly list maintenance required to verify the citizenship status of registered voters who have not provided proof of citizenship.

In Arizona, registered voters without proof of citizenship can vote only in federal elections, not state elections.

The lawsuit alleges the number of registered voters without proof of citizenship has jumped from 21,595 in April to 26,108 in July.

“Maricopa County, in direct violation of state law, is refusing to remove illegal alien voters from the rolls," AFL President Stephen Miller said Tuesday. "We are taking decisive action: suing Maricopa County for unlawfully permitting illegal aliens and foreign citizens to interfere in the 2024 election.”

Richer, a Republican who took office in 2021, lost his primary election for county recorder on July 30 to state Rep. Justin Heap, who ran on fixing issues with Maricopa County's elections.