Arizona voters pass measure allowing police to arrest migrants who illegally cross border

Arizona voters on Tuesday approved a ballot measure giving police officers the authority to arrest immigrants who cross into the U.S. illegally.

Proposition 314 was placed on ballots by Arizona's Republican-controlled legislature after Democratic Gov. Katie Hobbs vetoed similar legislation in March. The governor said at the time the bill did little to secure the southern border and instead vilified communities, as well as burdened law enforcement.

The proposition passed with just over 62% of the vote, according to the Associated Press.The measure also makes it a state crime for immigrants living in the U.S. illegally to apply for public health benefits and makes it a felony to knowingly sell fentanyl which causes a person's death.

In 2012, the Supreme Court struck down most of an Arizona bill which made it a crime to be living in the state illegally. A federal appeals court in March pointed to that decision when placing a similar Texas law on hold.

"For nearly 150 years, the Supreme Court has held that the power to control immigration — the entry, admission, and removal of noncitizens — is exclusively a federal power," 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals Chief Judge Priscilla Richman said earlier this year.

President-elect Donald Trump made immigration one of the main issues of his winning campaign. At a rally in Tempe, Arizona last month, he compared the U.S. to a "dumping ground" under immigrations policies of the Biden-Harris administration.

"We are like a garbage can for the world," Trump said at the time.

While Trump predicted Tuesday morning that immigration would be the top issue for voters, initial exit polling shared by CNN indicated otherwise. The network found economy and democracy were at top of mind with 31% and 35% respectively, while only 11% said issues at the border drove them to the polls.