In Maricopa County, home to a majority of voters, there are two pages — each measuring 17 inches long by 8½ inches wide when fully unfurled — that are covered front and backin fine print with races, full lists of the presidential electors from four parties,judges seeking to retain their seats and 13 statewide ballot questions on abortion, taxes, illegal immigration and a host of other issues.
“I thought maybe it would take a little bit of time” to fill out, said Sophia Tesch, 53, an independent voter from Scottsdale. “It took me 35 minutes.”
Election officials across the state worry that this unusually long ballot could lead to a host of problems on and after Election Day in the key state that could determine the outcome of the presidential election.
After Donald Trump narrowly lost Arizona in 2020, he and his allies sought to delay counting of the votes — and then certification by the county board — as a way to try to avert his defeat.Officials worry that complications or confusion stemming from the two-page ballot could whip up confrontations between voters and election workers and fan false claims of a rigged process in a place where many voters have fervently embraced election falsehoods and skepticism about the democratic process…..