As of Tuesday morning, Maricopa County was still counting roughly 34,450 of ballots. The state has until Dec. 3 to certify final election results.
Were there more provisional ballots in Arizona than past years?
Yes, but it'll be roughly the same proportion. In 2008, voters cast 151,799 provisional ballots — or about 5 percent of the total vote. That's about the same percentage the state will see this year, according to the Arizona secretary of state's office.
What is notable is the concentration of the overall bump in provisional ballots. They've largely originated out of Maricopa County, where in 2008, voters cast 99,826 provisional ballots (compared with 115,000 this year) and neighboring Pima County, where in 2008, voters cast 17,912 provisional ballots (compared with 26,194 such ballots this year.)
Is that why it's taking so long to count these votes?
That's one reason. Before they can be tabulated, provisional ballots have to be checked to confirm a voter's eligibility and that they were cast in the correct precinct. For early ballots, the signature on the envelope must be independently verified. Arizona has also seen a decreased number of polling locations this year as the result of redistricting. The delay is not new to this election. "The media seems to believe that things are taking longer than four years ago, but they aren't," Arizona secretary of state spokesman Matthew Roberts told ProPublica. "Our counties completed their work in 15 or so days last time, and that's what we are expecting this year."
How many state races are still pending?
As of Tuesday, the local media reported that just one state House seat remained too close to call as the result of Maricopa County's untabulated votes. But that's hardly been the only — or most significant — delay. It took nearly a week for the state's 9th U.S. congressional district to see a winner. And it took until just this past weekend for a victor to be declared in the seat once held by Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords. Democrat Ron Barber edged out his opponent, Republican Martha McSally, by just 1,402 votes.
Despite the fact that the most crucial races are settled, the vote count continues for other reasons. "We wouldn't want to disenfranchise Arizona's voters that cast a ballot," Roberts said. "We don't necessarily have any value on who's winning or who's losing — we just want to make sure they're accurate."
So why have some Arizona groups been vocal in protesting the delays?
Because they contend that provisional ballots were issued to a disproportionate number of minority Hispanic voters — many of whom are first-time voters. Petra Falcon, president of the voter advocacy group Promise Arizona, told ProPublica her organization helped register 34,000 new Latino voters this year in Maricopa County alone.
However, Falcon said some of those registered reported never receiving a free voter registration card or a requested early ballot in the mail. Others showed up at their polling location only to be told they were not on the voter registration list and that they'd have to cast a provisional ballot instead. (Falcon said she didn't have exact figures on the number of complaints.)