HB 2233 Summary

• Expands grounds for election contests to include votes with broken chain of custody and early votes with inconsistent signatures or personal information.

• Shortens the timeline for hearing election contests from ten days to twenty days after filing a statement of contest, with a maximum five-day continuance for good cause.

• Requires all appeals of final judgments in election contests to be filed directly with the Arizona Supreme Court, with appeals filed within ten days, responses within five days, and decisions rendered within five days of the hearing.

• Allows organizations and entities to designate rotating individuals to inspect ballots on their behalf in election contests.

• Grants parties in election contests broad discovery rights on any matter pertaining to the election and allows each party to depose up to ten persons, with courts required to liberally construe discovery limitations.