Judge bars Arizona group from harassing and photographing voters, carrying guns, near drop boxes

Arizona drop box
(Image credit: Olivier Touron/AFP via Getty Images)

A federal judge in Arizona on Tuesday enjoined the right-wing advocacy group Clean Elections USA from open-carrying firearms or wearing body armor within 250 feet of ballot drop boxes, taking photos or videos of voters, or interacting with them within 75 feet of a drop box. The injunction from U.S. District Court Judge Michael Liburdi, an appointee of former President Donald Trump, lasts through next week's midterm elections.

Liburdi had declined to limit Clean Elections USA's drop box activities last week in response to a request from the Arizona Alliance for Retired Americans and Voto Latino, saying he hadn't seen evidence of harm to voters. But testimony from hounded voters during a hearing on Tuesday, in a parallel case brought by the League of Women Voters of Arizona, appeared to persuade him that the box watchers had crossed the line into voter intimidation.

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Peter Weber, The Week US

Peter has worked as a news and culture writer and editor at The Week since the site's launch in 2008. He covers politics, world affairs, religion and cultural currents. His journalism career began as a copy editor at a financial newswire and has included editorial positions at The New York Times Magazine, Facts on File, and Oregon State University.