Supreme Court to Hear Arizona's Voter Registration Case

The U.S. Supreme Court has agreed to hear a case on whether Arizona can require voters to show proof of U.S. citizenship prior to voting in federal elections.

On Monday, the highest court in the land agreed to hear the case-but only after the Nov. 6 elections take place, Reuters reported.

The Wall Street Journal writes that the suit, brought forth by the state of Arizona, has the potential to further define the lines separating state and federal controls of regulations governing elections.

The case in Arizona centers around Proposition 200, a state law passed in 2004 by Arizona voters requiring residents to provide proof of citizenship prior to voting. The law is designed to stop undocumented immigrants from voting.

However, the law was challenged by Arizona immigrants, Native American tribes and civil rights groups and in April, a 10-member panel on the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in San Francisco overturned the proposition on account that the state and federal rules did not "operate harmoniously."

The Washington Post reported via the Associated Press that Alabama has filed a legal brief supporting the Arizona law, claiming that it and three other states-Georgia, Kansas and Tennessee-have similar voter requirements.

The law has drawn concern from Arizona-based activists worried over how the Supreme Court will rule in this case.

"Although this law was approved in Arizona in 2004, we're seeing a phenomenon throughout the country where rules have been implemented to make the process of voting more difficult, using fraud as an excuse," Alessandra Soler, the ACLE chief in Arizona, said, as reported by Fox News Latino via the Spanish news service Efe.

Soler further added that thus far, no one in Arizona had been charged with voter fraud. "This is a law for a crime that does not exist," she said.

Isabel Garcia, the director of the Arizona Human Rights Coalition, was also concerned, and told Efe that people are fearful that the Supreme Court could overturn the 9 Circuit court's decision.

"This (Prop 200) is a sign of racism, an attempt to reduce the participation of minority voters," Garcia said.

President Barack Obama, who has been largely favored by Hispanic voters in polls, has vowed to push for comprehensive immigration legislation upon re-election, while Republican candidate Mitt Romney has previously pledged to complete a high-tech fence along the U.S. border near Mexico and opposes any plan giving illegal residents an advantage in becoming citizens, the Chicago Tribune reported.