Arizona Revised Statutes

Ariz. Rev. Stat. § 19-205 (2026)

Signatures and verification

✓ current as of May 2026
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A. Every qualified elector signing a petition for a recall election shall do so in the presence of the person who is circulating the petition and who is to execute the affidavit of verification on the reverse side of the signature sheet. At the time of signing, the qualified elector shall:

1. Sign and print the elector's first and last name.

2. Write in the appropriate spaces following the signature the elector's residence address, giving street and number or, if the elector has no street address, a description of the elector's residence location, and the date on which the elector signed the petition.

B. The person before whom the signatures were written on the signature sheet shall in an affidavit subscribed and sworn to by that circulator before a notary public verify that each of the names on the sheet was signed in the circulator's presence on the date indicated, that the name and address were printed by the signer on the date indicated and that in the circulator's belief each signer was a qualified elector of the election district on the date indicated in which the recall election will be conducted. All signatures of petitioners on a signature sheet shall be those of qualified electors who are registered to vote in the same county. If signatures from more than one county appear on the same signature sheet, only the valid signatures from the same county that are most numerous on the signature sheet shall be counted.

Notes of Decisions
Cited in 6 cases, 1979–2011 · leading case: Franklin Bruce Ross v. Ken Bennett, 265 P.3d 356 (Ariz. 2011).
Franklin Bruce Ross v. Ken Bennett, 265 P.3d 356 (Ariz. 2011). · cites it 20× “§ 19-205(A). 4 . Other than checking birth certificates, social security cards, state-issued driver's licenses, and voter registration cards, it is difficult to conceive how a circulator might verify that a signature is "genuine” under Ross's definition.”
Johnson v. Maehling, 597 P.2d 1 (Ariz. 1979). · cites it 6× “This section would be unconstitutional under appellant’s construction of the state constitution.”
Green v. Osborne, 758 P.2d 138 (Ariz. 1988). · cites it 4× “A.R.S. § 19-205. On January 26, 1988, the Secretary of State filed the petition after having determined that 301,032 petition signatures were those of qualified electors and exceeded the minimum number required by the Arizona Constitution for requiring the holding of a recall…”
Jenkins v. Hale, 190 P.3d 175 (Ariz. 2008). · cites it 2× “§ 19-112(A) (2002) (requiring signers of initiative and referendum petitions to write, “in the appropriate spaces” on the initiative or referendum petition, a residence address or a description of residence location), and A.R.S. § 19-205(A) (2002) (same for recall petitions).”
KZPZ Broad., Inc. v. Black Canyon City Concerned Citizens, 13 P.3d 772 (Ariz. Ct. App. 2000). · cites it 2× “A.R.S. § 19-205(C)(emphasis added). No similar language is included requiring a referendum petition circulator to swear that he or she is a resident of the political subdivision affected by the measure.”
Montgomery Cnty. Volunteer Fire-Rescue Ass'n v. Montgomery Cnty. Bd. of Elections, 15 A.3d 798 (Md. 2011). “”); Ariz.Rev.Stat. § 19-205(B.) (2010) (stating "[i]n the absence of a legible signature, the name as it is printed shall be the name used to determine the validity of the signature.”
— Ariz. Rev. Stat. § 19-205(A) — 3 cases
Jenkins v. Hale, 190 P.3d 175 (Ariz. 2008). “§ 19-112(A) (2002) (requiring signers of initiative and referendum petitions to write, “in the appropriate spaces” on the initiative or referendum petition, a residence address or a description of residence location), and A.R.S. § 19-205(A) (2002) (same for recall petitions).”
Franklin Bruce Ross v. Ken Bennett, 265 P.3d 356 (Ariz. 2011). “§ 19-205(A). 4 . Other than checking birth certificates, social security cards, state-issued driver's licenses, and voter registration cards, it is difficult to conceive how a circulator might verify that a signature is "genuine” under Ross's definition.”
Johnson v. Maehling, 597 P.2d 1 (Ariz. 1979). “This section would be unconstitutional under appellant’s construction of the state constitution.”
— Ariz. Rev. Stat. § 19-205(B) — 2 cases
Franklin Bruce Ross v. Ken Bennett, 265 P.3d 356 (Ariz. 2011). “§ 19-205(A). 4 . Other than checking birth certificates, social security cards, state-issued driver's licenses, and voter registration cards, it is difficult to conceive how a circulator might verify that a signature is "genuine” under Ross's definition.”
Johnson v. Maehling, 597 P.2d 1 (Ariz. 1979). “This section would be unconstitutional under appellant’s construction of the state constitution.”
— Ariz. Rev. Stat. § 19-205(C) — 2 cases
Franklin Bruce Ross v. Ken Bennett, 265 P.3d 356 (Ariz. 2011). “§ 19-205(A). 4 . Other than checking birth certificates, social security cards, state-issued driver's licenses, and voter registration cards, it is difficult to conceive how a circulator might verify that a signature is "genuine” under Ross's definition.”
KZPZ Broad., Inc. v. Black Canyon City Concerned Citizens, 13 P.3d 772 (Ariz. Ct. App. 2000). “A.R.S. § 19-205(C)(emphasis added). No similar language is included requiring a referendum petition circulator to swear that he or she is a resident of the political subdivision affected by the measure.”
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