Ben Giles/KJZZ

Pastor Warren Stewart, the chair of the African American Christian Clergy, on Feb. 14, 2022, urges the NFL to move Super Bowl LVII out of Arizona in protest of new state voting laws passed since the 2020 election.

Citing ongoing efforts by state leaders to pass more voting restrictions, a local activist is doubling down on calls for the NFL to pull next year’s Super Bowl from Arizona.

Rev. Warren Stewart, senior pastor at Phoenix’s First Institutional Baptist Church, has been calling for the move since last year.

“The reason we launched the block on the Super Bowl was because of bills passed by the legislature and the governor signed last year, so now he’s added to that, so he’s worsened the issue, supporting voter suppression,” said Stewart.

Stewart says the recently-passed HB 2492, which requires proof of citizenship to vote in federal elections and may force thousands of Arizonans to re-register, is unconstitutional.

Gov. Doug Ducey says the bill furthers election integrity and prevents attempts to cast illegal votes.

Stewart says if the NFL doesn’t listen to the request, he will move on to advocating to the NFL Players Association.

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