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His signature came less than two hours after the Senate, on a 16-14 party-line vote, approved Senate Bill 1485 based on claims that ballots are being sent out to people who do not use them. Republican senators said having un-voted early ballots leads to the possibility that someone else could get hold of them and cast a fraudulent vote.

In Pima County alone there were about 70,000 early ballots mailed out last election that were not returned, said Sen. Vince Leach, R-Tucson.

But Sen. Kirsten Engel, D-Tucson, said there is no documented evidence of fraud due to early voting.

“That is completely made up,’’ she said.

Various lawsuits alleging election fraud or irregularities in Arizona all have been dismissed, though the Senate still has an outside firm conducting what it calls a “forensic audit’’ of the 2020 general election returns from Maricopa County.

Ducey’s quick action is designed to provide little time for foes of the bill to marshal a campaign against it. They particularly include one group that normally would be in the Republican governor’s political corner — business and health executives in Greater Phoenix Leadership.

In a letter last month, members of the group said they believe this proposal and two other changes in election laws sought by Republicans “seek to disenfranchise voters.’’

“These proposals are a concerted effort from those in Arizona — and across the nation — who wish to sow additional doubts about our elections in the minds of voters, and feed into the paranoia that has plagued our political discourse over the past several months,’’ they wrote.

No one will lose right to vote

In a video news release — the governor would not answer questions from reporters — Ducey said the opposition was based on “deceptive and heated rhetoric being used by some partisan activists.’’

He pointed out that even with approval of SB 1485, no one will lose the right to vote.

Under Arizona law until this point, individuals can request to be mailed an early ballot before every election. Those ballots keep on coming as long as someone remains a registered voter, even if people choose to vote in person or even decide not to vote in that election.

The new law says if people don’t use a requested early ballot for two election cycles they no longer will get one automatically in the mail. That still leaves them the ability to make a new request to get back on the early voting list. And none of this keeps them from voting in person.

Ducey also took a preemptive strike at those who might use his signature on this bill to take counter measures.

Earlier this year, Major League Baseball yanked its All-Star Game out of Georgia after that state enacted new voting restrictions. And several corporations, including Delta Airlines and Coca-Cola, both based in Georgia, criticized that state’s law.

Those actions did not escape Ducey. “Elsewhere in America, large corporations have decided to insert themselves into the debate over election law,’’ he said in his video statement. “My advice to them regarding this law is simple: Know what you’re talking about before you say anything.’’

There is still the possibility of political backlash, particularly in the area of sports. Arizona is scheduled to host the 2023 Super Bowl, the NCAA Men’s Final Four in 2024 and the Women’s Final Four two years later. Michael Bidwill, owner of the Arizona Cardinals, was among those signing that Greater Phoenix Leadership letter.

Democrat levels racism charge

Sen. Martin Quezada, D-Glendale, said there are reasons people are questioning the legislation.

He said the evidence shows that the change is more likely to knock people of color off the list. And from his perspective, he said, that leaves only one reason for the measure — systemic racism.

That statement drew objections from several Republican lawmakers who said that Senate rules preclude lawmakers from questioning the motives of others. Senate President Karen Fann, R-Prescott, cautioned him to stick to the merits of the measure.

Quezada, however, would not back down. “We cannot separate those issues,’’ he said.

Sen. Juan Mendez, D-Tempe, was also pointed in his criticism. “It makes me think you don’t like who votes — or who has the potential to vote,’’ he said.

“This bill looks like nothing more than a ruse to disenfranchise voters that you don’t like,’’ Mendez continued. “You’re not trying to stop fraud. You’re trying to pick and choose who gets to vote conveniently.’’

Engel said there are reasons that people don’t vote in every election. Perhaps they’re not excited by candidates who are on the ballot in a given year, or they are turned off by the partisanship, she said. Some may just have higher priorities, Engel said.

That drew derision from Leach. “The best country in the world, and you have an opportunity to participate in it,’’ he said. “But it’s not at the top of somebody’s list?’’

Quezada suggested that ignores how people create a priority list. “It’s keeping food on the table, it’s keeping their lights on, it’s finding day care for their children,’’ he said. “It’s being able to drive down the street without getting pulled over and end up getting shot in the back by police.’’

But Sen. Kelly Townsend, R-Mesa, said she spent years as a young adult being “extremely poor, wondering where I was going to get money for day care and all the other things that were mentioned.”

“Did I vote?’’ she said.

“I absolutely did,’’ Townsend continued. “And I think to suggest that a person somehow cannot figure out how to vote because they are of a certain color is disparaging to the people who have situations similar to mine.’’

The measure is about more than about preventing fraud and keeping “phantom voters’’ from getting ballots, said Sen. Sonny Borrelli, R-Lake Havasu City.

“It’s our responsibility to also help the counties be able to save money that is taxpayer dollars in printing those excess ballots … that gets mailed out,’’ he said.

More election laws coming

Of particular note is that Tuesday’s vote ensures the Republican-controlled Legislature will enact more changes to voting laws and procedures.

SB 1485 had failed last month after Townsend refused to provide the necessary 16th vote in the 30-member Senate. She said the state needs to enact more fixes to the system than it includes.

On Tuesday, however, Townsend told Capitol Media Services she now has been promised there will be at least one new measure on election security this year.

“It’s going to be heavy on the chain of custody of all election equipment,’’ she said. “We’ll know who did it, what they did with it, that kind of stuff.’’

No versions of that have yet been made public.

All this is occurring as Democrats in Congress are pushing what is dubbed the For the People Act, to enact a host of changes in how states conduct their elections including same-day registration and requirements for voting by mail. Republicans are opposing the move as a power grab by Democrats now that they happen to control the U.S. House and Senate and have a Democrat as president.