Skyshout/KJZZ
A roadside voting sign at a polling place for the Dove of the Desert United Methodist Church in Glendale, Arizona, November 3, 2020.
The Cochise County Board of Supervisors settled a voter disability discrimination lawsuit on October 31. In 2020, the Arizona Center for Disability Law filed this case on behalf of Kathleen Hoffard, a county voter with disabilities who was denied curbside voting in 2018. .
According to Sey In, a staff attorney at the center, the lawsuit arose because the election administration failed to accommodate Hoffard, who has rheumatoid arthritis.
“In this case, the elections office did not conduct a separate inquiry into whether the consideration was reasonable. They flatly denied her,” he said.
The lawsuit sought to make appropriate adjustments to Hoffard. Meaghan Kramer is the Center’s medical attorney.
“That is why we wanted Mr. Hoffard to be able to vote in person on the street in this election and all future elections,” she said.
Under the terms of the settlement, Cochise County will be required to take certain actions, including providing street voting to individuals with disabilities who make timely requests.
