Arizona Republicans are choosing between two candidates for the state’s top election official: Gina Swoboda and Alex Kolodin. The winner will face Democratic incumbent Adrian Fontes in the general election.

Different Approaches

Swoboda, the former chair of the Arizona Republican Party, has experience working in the secretary’s office and crafting election legislation. She pledges to work with local election officials to improve technology and run elections reliably and transparently.

Kolodin, a current member of the Arizona House of Representatives, is a teacher-turned-attorney who has criticized election officials and described existing election systems as dysfunctional. He says he cares more about the will of voters than the concerns of election officials.

Election Integrity

Both candidates have called for changes to the state’s Elections Procedures Manual, which has the force of law in Arizona. Swoboda wants to align the manual more closely with state law, while Kolodin has criticized the manual’s description of activities that might constitute voter intimidation.

Swoboda also wants to require voters to provide their driver’s license number if they have one, to make it easier for election officials to check registrants’ citizenship status. Kolodin has supported legislation to ban vote centers and require voters to confirm their address each election cycle to vote by mail.

The winner of the Republican primary will play a critical role in issuing voluntary guidance to election offices and dictating how voting must be run in Arizona.

Original reporting: Arizona Luminaria — read the source article.