Registration End Coming For AZ Presidential Preference Election

ACROSS ARIZONA — Maricopa County and Pima County Democrats who want to vote in the March 17 Presidential Preference Election (PPE) must register by Feb. 18. Other political parties opted not to participate in the PPE, which is not a primary election.

The Presidential Preference Election, however, allows Democratic voters to indicate their preferred presidential candidate nominee for the 2020 General Election. The Democratic delegates will then vote at the national convention for the candidate who won the Arizona PPE, unless the PPE winner withdraws from the presidential race, releases the delegate’s obligation or gets a convention nomination. Delegates also aren’t required to vote for the PPE winner at the national convention if an official nominee isn’t selected by the time one voting round has been completed.

Voters who aren’t currently registered as Democrats but want to vote in the PPE can do so by changing their political party on their voter registration by Feb. 18.

Here are more PPE dates you need to know:

• Feb. 19: Early voting for the PPE starts
• March 6: Deadline for voters to request a ballot by mail
• March 11: The last day Democratic voters can mail in their PPE ballots
• March 13: The final day voters can cast their ballots early in person
• March 17: Democrat Presidential Preference Election Day

Then, from May to August 2020, each party’s national convention nominee selections are finalized.

Polls are open on Election Day from 6 a.m. to 7 p.m., and a form of identification is required at the polls.

Maricopa County residents wanting to check their voter registration status and individualized 2020 election information can do so at the recorder’s website. The county has new ballots and new tabulation machines expected to count up to 8,000 ballots hourly, 12news.com reported.

To register online to vote in Maricopa County, go to the Maricopa County Recorder’s website.

To register online to vote in Pima County, go to the Pima County Recorder’s website.

With Julian Castro, Marianne Williamson and Cory Booker dropping out of the race, the current Democratic presidential candidates on the PPE ballot are:

• Amy Klobuchar
• Tulsi Gabbard
• Roque “Rocky” De La Fuente
• John Delaney
• Pete Buttigieg
• Michael R. Bloomberg
• Andrew Yang
• Tom Steyer
• Deval Patrick
• Bernie Sanders
• Michael Ellinger
• Michael Bennet
• Henry Hewes
• Elizabeth Warren
• Joseph Biden

For more information on the PPE, visit azcleanelections.gov.

Arizona voters have until July 6 to register for the Primary Election.